Revelations
by Adelaide
Summary: AU-Padawans Padme Naberrie and Obi-wan Kenobi, along with their masters, Qui-gon Jinn and Rohhe Antol, are sent on a mission to the newly found planet of Iagone. What happens there is quite unexpected.
1. Chapter 1

Revelations- Part 1

By: Adelaide   
Rating: PG or PG-13   
Pairing: Padme / Obi-Wan   
Summary: AU- Padme Naberrie, Obi-wan Kenobi and their masters, Qui-gon Jinn and Rohhe Antol, are sent on a scouting mission to a newly found planet. What happens there is quite unexpected. OBIDALA ALERT!!!!!!!!!!!   
Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters except Rohhe Antol and Illyria. I am not making any money from this. I'm just doing it for a little bit of fun. No infringement intended.   
Author's Note: My first Star Wars fic actually. I don't know where I got the idea, but I hope you like it. You may ask why I chose to switch Qui-gon from being Obi-wan's master to Padme's...well, I dunno, I just like the idea of Qui-gon being a father figure for her, and I've read some great fics where they have a close relationship and I liked it..so, I hope that answers that. BTW- Padme is 18 and Obi-Wan is 23. 

"blah blah blah" means talking out loud.....of course 

~blah blah blah~ means telepathic communication 

'blah blah blah' means thinking   


Some of you may remember me, or remember this story. Yes, I fell off the face of the earth for a while, but I came across this story the other day and decided I wanted to start writing again. I'm really trying to finish this. I have many more than four chapters written, but I'm just letting them sit so I can run over them again before I post them. Anyways, I have revised the first few chapters slightly ( and I mean slightly ) and have added a new fourth chapter. So, I hope ya'll enjoy.   


* * *

Padme stood silently in the rain, blinking rapidly to keep the water out of her eyes. Her thick chestnut-colored hair was pulled back into three braids, as was the typical padawan style, but the downpour had loosened some strands that now stuck to her face. Her violet blue lightsaber was lit and swayed slightly back and forth, guided by the Force. She was in deep concentration, trying to sense the opponent she knew was somewhere around her. 

The swish of another lightsaber brought Padme's own up over her head to block the blow. When the contact was made, she used all of her strength to push back her opponent. She turned to face him, readying herself for the fight. The rain began to come down much harder now, and it was becoming difficult to even see her their own hands, although they could clearly see each other with a little help from the Force. They stared for what seemed like eternity, trying to read each other's thoughts and anticipate the other's next move. 

The man made the first move by lunging forward through the downpour and kicking out his foot, but Padme blocked with a sidekick to his ankle, spraying the droplets that had collected on both of their boots everywhere. The force of the blow spun the man completely around. When he turned to face her again, his saber was moving fluidly along with his body. As it came full circle towards her, Padme barely had time to step out of the way, causing the man to create a small rip in her grey cloak. They parried like that for a few more minutes until, when they sabers were locked together, the man kicked Padme in the stomach causing her to stumble and fall onto her back. She immediately flipped up and reignited her saber. The man was fast to attack her again, spinning to do a front flip in the air. Padme mirrored his action. Midair their sabers crashed together hard, causing sparks to fly. When they landed, each stood in a sideways stance, lowing their weapons slightly to stop and think about what the other was going to do next. 

Padme watched as the man knelt to jump at her. Her knees fell to the mud, in an attempt to duck the force of his attack. What she didn't count on, though, was that he would twist in the middle of the move, causing him to face her back when he landed. When she went to stand up, she felt the heat of his saber over her head. 

"You're dead my Padawan." Qui-gon switched off his weapon as Padme turned around. He extended his hand in an offer to help her up. She took it gratefully and stood, now looking minuscule as his form towered over hers. 

"I guess I'm not yet ready to go up against you one on one, Master." She said while they walked towards the dry Jedi Temple, only now seeming to realize that it was raining. 

Qui-gon turned and smiled at her when they entered. 

"I know all of your secrets Padme. I believe I have a slight advantage over you in battle." He took her face in his hands and kissed her forehead. 

"Now, it's late, go meditate on today's lesson. I'll see you in the morning." 

Padme looked at her master with confusion. She never meditated alone. He was always with her. 

"Aren't you going to meditate with me?" She searched his eyes for answers. 

Qui-gon was like a father to her. She loved him more than anybody in the world. He had chosen her for his Padawan eight years ago when she was only ten. He had found her after her parents had been assassinated. Many people hadn't liked the righteous attitude her mother and father held when they were members of the Senate. A band of small, but powerful, neighboring planets of their homeworld, joined together and took it over, killing her parents in the process. She was left alive only because she was so young. A couple of days after the attack, the Jedi were sent to her planet to re-establish peace and set order among star system. After he had met the quivering Padme in the palace cellar, Qui-gon argued countless times in front of the Jedi council to let him train her. They had believed she was far too old to begin training, but Qui-gon didn't give up. He pleaded her case nonstop. Eventually, when Master Yoda truly felt that it was the will of the Force, he gave in, and never once, since then, regretted the decision. 

"No, the Council has called me to a meeting. I'm afraid it will take most of the night." His hands rested on her shoulders. 

Padme was going to ask why the Council had called him, but she knew he would have told her if he could. Besides, she figured it must have been important if they called it at such a late hour in the night. 

"Alright. Good night Master." She bowed at the waist in respect and then smiled as she left for their joint rooms. 

* * *

Qui-gon entered the council room and looked around. The smooth white walls were beautifully reflecting the soft light that flickered from translucent panels between the floor to ceiling windows. All twelve members of the Council sat quietly in their chairs, which molded perfectly to their bodies. In the center of the room, on the large Jedi crest, stood his friend and fellow Jedi Master: Rohhe Antol. He was only slightly shorter than Qui-gon, but at least ten standard years older. His hair was fashioned into short grey layers, with an all white cropped beard on his face. Rohhe had just recently returned from an off world mission with his padawan, Obi-wan Kenobi. 

Qui-gon smiled politely at his friend, not wanting to show excessive emotion in front of the Council, something that had been drilled into him since his padawan years. 

"Thank you for coming Master Jinn." Mace Windu started to speak as the two masters he was addressing took their places in front of him. 

"Please have a seat." Two hovering chairs floated over to each of them, and molded to their bodies as they sat down. 

"We have much to talk about." 

* * *

As hard as she tried, Padme could not concentrate. She needed someone else with her. She needed Qui-gon. 

She had thought that perhaps if she took a nice hot shower, drank some warm milk, and got into her really cozy thick brown cloak, it would help her clear her mind, but it didn't. For some reason she was more awake then ever. 

Sighing, Padme stood up. If she wasn't able to sleep, then Obi-wan wasn't going to either. 

Besides, she hadn't seen her best friend since he returned. It would be nice to spend some time with him. 

Without a sound, she walked to the door stepped out. Turning left, she walked down the long hallway to his and his master's apartment, nodding and smiling to any other Jedi, who happened to walk by, along the way. She was glad that she and Obi-wan had developed a strong mental bond over the years, for when she walked up to the door that led to his room, it instantly opened. He had obviously sensed her restlessness. 

Walking through the common room and down a small corridor, she found him in the classic meditating position. 

Without an exchange between the two, Padme knelt down in front of him. Instantly, she felt comforted. 

They often did things like this. When Padme had come to the Temple, she and Obi-wan had severely annoyed each other. She would always tease and nitpick at him for being a headstrong womanizer and he would counter with insults of her being a nosey control freak. Soon after, they realized that whenever they spent time with each other, teasing or not, they had fun. They could tell each other anything. Sometimes, they didn't even have to speak to know how the other felt. Ever since Padme was twelve and Obi-wan was seventeen, they were best friends. 

After about four hours of silence, they opened their eyes. Obi-wan was the first to speak. 

"So, where's Master Jinn?" 

Padme smiled. He knew her so well. 

"He's in an all night meeting with the council, but he wouldn't tell me why." She stood up and plopped herself down onto his small bed. 

"That's odd. My master is with them as well." A confusion rushed through him, as he sat down next to her. 

"Do you think we'll have another mission together?" She offered with a hopeful smile. 

Obi-wan turned to her with a knowing and teasing look on his face. 

"After what happened last time Padme?" The grin on his face was so wide Padme wanted to smack him. 

"Hey, I thought we agreed that it was NOT MY FAULT the thing exploded!" 

"Oh okay, sure." Sarcasm was something Padme did not want to hear in relation to the incident. 

Huffing, she got up and stalked out of his room and into the sitting area of the apartment. She kept her back to him when he entered behind her. 

"Oh come on Padme, I'm just kidding. It's not like anybody was seriously hurt, and Qui-gon's beard grew back eventually." Obi-wan knew that would get a kick out of her. He supposed it shouldn't have been funny, but it really was. 

Padme couldn't help but grin at the memory of her master's expression when he found out his face was smoking. 

'Where was his infinite calmness then?' she pondered. 

She turned to face him with her arms crossed, trying desperately to not smile. She instantly failed when she saw the devilish little grin she loved so much, on his face. 

Sighing, she shifted her weight onto one leg and placed a hand on her hip. 

"How come I can never stay mad at you Obi?" 

"Dashing good looks, unbelievably witty humor, amazing intellect, I could go on and on...." He posed with each statement, causing Padme to double over in laughter, it was just what she needed after the month without him. 

"I'm sure you could. But if you are, you will just have to do it alone, because I need to get to sleep." Hugging him, she left the room, feeling better than she had in weeks. 

"Goodnight Padme." He called after her. 

"Sweet dreams Obi." She responded before the doors swished shut behind her and she retired to her own room. 

tbc.... 


	2. Chapter 2

Revelations-Part 2   
Disclaimer and such in Part 1 

* * *

Padme woke to the sound and smell of cooking breakfast meat. Taking in a deep breath to savor the scent, she stretched and turned over to continue sleeping. 

Qui-gon smiled as he watched her through his mind. The girl really did love to sleep. He had allowed her to sleep in because he knew they had a long journey ahead of them, and she would need all the rest she could get for it. He, himself, could go days without sleep, but it was only something he did in extreme circumstances. 

Once he was done with the meat and had set it on the small dining table, he walked into Padme's room to wake her up. 

Effortlessly sliding off his cloak and taking his saber from his belt, Qui-gon walked over to his Padawan's bed. She still didn't stir. 

Smiling, he quickly ignited his weapon and, with a swoosh, swung it towards Padme's sleeping form. 

Fortunately, he had trained her well enough to sense if an attack was coming while she slept. 

Rolling out of the way, with a speed only a Jedi could muster, she flattened herself against the wall parallel to her bed. Before she had even gotten that far, though, her own   
lightsaber was lit and connected with his. 

"Very good, but you should have sensed I was coming long before I ignited my weapon." It was all he had to say to her. When they had first started lessons like this,   
Padme would often yell at her Master for scaring her or even almost killing her. His only reply was that she needed to get faster. She soon learned not to question or raise her voice to him. 

He lowered saber and turned it off. 

"Come on, breakfast is ready. I made your favorite, Aampa meat and Trisus eggs." He smiled and walked back to the small kitchen. 

Padme excitedly jumped out of bed, but thought better of running to the table. Although she ached quite badly to do so, it was unbefitting of a Jedi and she knew Qui-gon   
would tell her just that. Therefore, she smoothed out her robes and walked politely into the dining area. 

Taking a seat across from her master, Padme helped herself to plenty of the dishes in font of her. Before she got the first forkful into her mouth, though, she stopped and   
glanced back and forth between the food and her smiling Master. 

'Why is Qui-gon making me breakfast? He barely ever does that. In fact, he only does it when........he wants something.' 

"Okay what it is? Does this," she gestured to the food on the table," have to do with what the Council wanted last night?" 

Qui-gon smirked. He knew she would figure it out eventually. 

"Yes, as a matter of fact, it does. This may be our last chance for a decent meal in a while." He watched for her reaction. When he only saw confusion, he continued. 

"We, that is, Master Antol, Padawan Kenobi, you, and I, were given a very special and important mission last night." 

Padme's face lit up. An important mission from the council! With Obi-wan! 

"We leave in a few hours." 

"For where?" 

"Well, I don't know exactly, but we are being sent to study a newly found star system. Only one planet there has been found to inhabit life, but we know little to nothing about them." Qui-gon smiled as he watched his Padawan's eyes dance with delight. 

"I can't wait." She said breathlessly. 

He stood up from the table to go make arrangements for their transportation. 

'Wow! A research mission from the Council. What an honor! Maybe they HAVE forgiven me after all.' She thought excitedly. 

"Oh and Padme," He turned back towards her before he left the room, "when we're there, please, stay away from the generators." 

'Then again maybe not.' 

* * *

Obi-wan tried to remain calm as Padme and Qui-gon entered the hanger. He was so happy that he was going to be spending months exclusively with his best friend. Being Padawans and all, they hadn't really been able to see each other often. One or the other was always off on some mission with their master. And if not that, then it was something else: tests, training, or even just getting some sleep. 

As casually as he could, he greeted them 

"Master Jinn, Padawan Naberrie." He bowed slightly to Qui-gon in respect, while Padme did the same for his master. 

All four people could easily tell how excited Padme and Obi-wan were, even if the two didn't want to show it to anybody but themselves. 

Rohhe decided to give them some mercy, though. 

"Qui-gon, why don't we let Obi-wan and Padme take the bags into the ship while we go converse with the pilot and crew over there." He motioned with his head towards a   
small group of uniformed men and women. 

Qui-gon got the hint and walked with him, leaving their Padawan behind to relish in their excitement. 

Obi-wan and Padme effortlessly lifted the luggage and walked up the ramp into the small cruiser. 

Once inside and in a semi-private location, for it would not do for ordinary people to see to Jedi practically bouncing with excitement, Obi-wan dropped the luggage and   
picked Padme up into a huge bear hug. 

"I can't believe it, an actual research mission from the Council!" Padme breathed. 

"I know, I couldn't believe it at first, myself." He set her down gently. 

"To think, we get to be the first ones to see an entirely new race of people." Her voice clearly held awe. 

Before anything more could be said, they heard Rohhe's voice from the bottom of the ramp. 

"I hope you two have those bags put away by now, because we're ready to leave!" In the hanger, Qui-gon and Rohhe grinned as they mentally watched their Padawan immediately grab the suitcases and speed walk to the different rooms. 

"Shall we go." Qui-gon said while still smiling. 

"I believe so." 

With that, they entered the ship and set off. 

tbc... 


	3. Chapter 3

Revelations-Part 3   
Disclaimer and such in Part 1 

* * *

After a standard lunar cycle of endless wandering, the excitement Padme and Obi-wan had first felt, had worn off. They had known it was going to take awhile to reach their   
destination, since their current galaxy was huge already, but the reality was only hitting them now. 

However, a month isolated on a spaceship did have its advantages. 

For instance, the Padawans were able to get even closer in their relationship, not to mention their mental bond. No more did they constantly tease eachother, although it still   
happened. Instead, they would sit down and talk for hours on end, have sparing sessions, and sometimes Padme would even get Obi-wan to listen to her while she taught him to garden and dance. In return, though, she would have stay awake through his attempts to teach her how to play some sort of running and catching a ball while trying not to be tackled thing. Padme never really understood what it was, or what the point could possibly be. 

Of course, this never took time away from their daily training and lessons, or meditation and down time with their masters. In reality, their schedules were very strict. They   
only had a couple hours of free time to do anything they wanted. This was mostly because they did have to help operate the ship and keep it in prime condition. 

The midday break was Padme's favorite time to spend with Obi-wan, since it was so long. 

She was, in fact, beginning it at the moment. 

She wore her usual friendly smile, as she walked down and twisted through the several corridors that separated her and her best friend. Her long, gray cloak billowed behind her. 

~Padme?~ She heard Obi-wan through her mind. 

~Sorry I'm late, but the ship logs caught a glitch and Qui-gon wouldn't let me leave until it was fixed.~ 

She nodded her head to an officer as she passed him. 

~I'll be there in only a moment. No need to call for a search party.~ 

Obi-wan smirked in the make-shift sitting area of his quarters. Good to her word, Padme entered through the door seconds later. 

He stood up to greet her. 

They sat for a while just talking about this and that. When the conversation turned to training, Padme stood up and started pushing the furniture out of the center of the   
room. 

"Um, Pad, what are you doing?" 

"Well we were talking about training, and tonight Qui-gon is testing me on levitation. I was thinking that we could do a little practice? I could certainly use some good advice." 

"Of course." Obi-wan moved to one side of the room. "Why don't we try some suspending jumps and then move to actual levitation just to get your mindset right." 

"Stand about ten paces away from me......good. Now, lunge at me and act as if you're going to plant your feet straight down onto my chest." 

It was quite a simple thing he was asking her really. Padme had done it many many times before, but, she had never gotten it completely down. 

Nevertheless, if she was going to pass her test, she needed to practice. So, crouching down and closing her eyes, Padme jumped. 

It worked, for the most part anyway. She got about halfway to him when she fell. 

Growling, she stood up and walked back to her starting position. 

"It's okay, it was a good first try, but don't forget to keep in tune with the Living Force. Close your eyes and concentrate." 

She nodded her head slightly, and closed her eyes again. She could feel the life giving energy all around and through her. With each pulsating moment, a wave of warmth   
racked her body. All she had to do, now, was tap into it. 

She opened her eyes after a moment or two and jumped again. 

This time, however, Padme had too much power. She jumped over him and hit her head on the high ceiling. That in itself, caused her to lose concentration and fall straight   
down. 

Obi-wan quickly rushed under her and caught her falling body, but the impact of the action caused them both to go tumbling to the floor. Absent-mindedly, Obi-wan's form   
pressed firmly on top of hers. 

Padme burst out laughing. He was soon to follow. 

"Some advice." She giggled and stared up at him. 

"I didn't think you'd take it that much to heart." 

They continued their giggle fest for a few more minutes, but their laughing soon subsided as they finally realized how they were lying. 

Her eyes instantly locked with his. The stare seemed to last for an eternity to them. Both were shielding their thoughts from the other, although they were thinking the exact   
same thing. 

Coughing, Padme rolled out from under him and stood up. 

"I'd better go. Thanks for the advice." It all came out too quickly and she knew he noticed. 

To avoid further embarrassment, she about faced and made a hasty exit, leaving Obi-wan lying on the floor with a bewildered stare. 

* * *

The two Padawans religiously avoided each other for the rest of the day, each desperately not wanting to look the other in the face. 

Not only that, though, the confusing thing for both, was that they enjoyed the closeness and the attraction that passed between them. 

'It's a strange feeling to all of a sudden have unclean thoughts about your best friend,' Padme thought. 'Not a bad feeling, just a strange one.' 

She needed time to think. 

The Force wouldn't allow that though, for when she entered her quarters that evening to sleep, a message went through the whole ship. 

"This is your captain speaking. All aboard, we've made it. Iagone is in site!" 

"Just my luck." Padme groaned. 

Sitting back up from her bed, she huffed and headed to the cockpit. 

When she entered, her breath was completely taken away. 

Through the glass was the most beautiful planet she had ever seen. 

Brilliant white clouds moved swiftly across the sky, while the interior consisted of every color green imaginable. She could've sworn she saw the the color pulsating. 

Obi-wan entered a moment later. 

Padme glimpsed at him sheepishly but quickly looked away before he could notice. 

Qui-gon and Rohhe exchanged inquiring glances but went back to viewing Iagone. 

"Wow, it really is something." Captain Penkin breathed. 

"It looks so peaceful." Padme commented staring intently so she wouldn't have to look at anybody else, namely Obi-wan. 

"I'm sure the people and the planet are..." 

Before the captain could finish a huge explosion jolted the entire ship. 

tbc.. 


	4. Chapter 4

Revelations - Part 4   
Disclaimer and such in Part 1

* * *

Red warning lights flared as the ship started its descent towards the misleadingly peaceful looking planet. All the Jedi could hear the screams of the frightened crew, both in their minds as well as through their keen sense of hearing. It was their duty to stay calm and make sure that, although they were going to crash this ship, they would do it with inflicting the least amount of damage possible to both the ship and the crew. 

Padme quickly pushed herself up from the ground where she had fallen when the blast had hit. Her eyes sought out Obi-Wan. Even though her awkwardness towards him was still present in the perilous situation, she wanted to make sure that he was all right. In moments she confirmed that he was and moved her gaze to her master, in hopes of seeing some sort of plan forming in his eyes. 

Qui-Gon sensed her unease, along with her eyes on him, and gave her a comforting look while he spoke to her. 

"Padawan, retrieve the rest of the crew and bring them here. We all must quickly brace ourselves for the impact that will soon come." 

Mentally counting how many people she needed to gather up, Padme nodded and rushed through the cockpit doors and down the corridors of the ship. Halfway to the crew's quarters, the ship lurched and the power went out, leaving her in utter darkness. 

~Great~ she thought ~As if this task wasn't hard enough.~ 

True, the tumult the shaking of the ship caused was making it hard for her to complete her task with great speed. It did get completed with efficiency, however, when she found the last crew member only a few minutes after Qui-Gon had sent her out. She looked over the man, and to her relief, he, like everyone else she had found previously, had not been harmed in the explosion. Her relief was short lived, though, when she realized that they would not be so lucky when they attempted to land. 

"Come, you need to get to the safety of the cockpit immediately." Padme extended her arm towards the slight-framed engineer and pulled him up from the floor. 

They started to make their way back to the cockpit; the frightened man clasped to Padme's arm so tightly he was cutting off the circulation to her fingers. Having a numb arm from the bicep down wasn't Padme's idea of fun, but she knew she needed to keep the painful physical contact since the poor man she was holding wasn't nearly as adept to maneuvering in complete darkness as she was. About halfway to their destination, another blast hit the small ship, sending the engineer reeling to the floor, taking Padme with him. 

Padme felt her master reach out to her with concern. 

~Are you all right Padme?~ Qui-Gon's soft voice floated into her mind. 

~My charge was a little unprepared for that, but we're both unharmed.~ She replied back and felt her master's relief and exit from her thoughts. 

Padme helped the man next to her up and continued to guide him back to the cockpit, all the while sending him calm, warm feelings through the force, even though she herself was afraid of what was to come of them. When they reached their destination, Padme took a small gasp. Iagone was certainly a lot closer than she had expected. 

The engineer finally released his tight grip on the young Jedi's arm and flung himself into a nearby seat. Clasping himself securely in among the other crew members, he braced for impact. 

Seeing that her last charge was finally gathered up, Padme looked around the cockpit. Rohhe Antol had commandeered the pilot's chair and was trying with all his might and mind to control the spiraling ship. Obi-Wan was settled next to him, along with Master Jinn, and both were concentrating on "encouraging" the constant barrage of lasers to steer away from the prone ship. They were doing a good job, although a few shots still managed to slip through. 

Padme was somewhat at a loss as to what to do, seeing as she had never been in a similar situation before. Sure, she had her share of crashed cruisers, but that was nothing like spinning headfirst towards an unknown planet. 

Obi-Wan felt her indecision and turned to her. With a small, reassuring smile and warm eyes, he motioned her to join her master and him. Feeling the awkwardness between them ease a bit, she complied and started to focus on the blaster shots, willing them to do no more harm. 

Despite the fact that Rohhe was an amazing pilot, the best Obi-Wan or Padme had ever known, the crash was inevitable. Once they broke the atmosphere, they spent a few moments skidding above treetops and then narrowly missed landing in a lake. Soon after, though, their ship hit a hidden outcrop of rocks and started in a horizontal spin towards the dense greenery of the jungle below. 

The ship tumbled and shook as they smashed into the branches of a cluster of large trees just below the jungle canopy. A sudden jerk brought Padme's synch tightly around her ribcage, causing the air to escape her lungs. The ship was hanging nose down and suspended in the trees simply by a few slim branches.. Hanging only by her synch with her back to the sky, Padme felt as if she would pass out any minute from the lack of oxygen. A loud creaking sound echoed through the hull as branches started to break from out beneath them. Another explosion racked the ship, forming a large hole in the side of the cockpit and causing the ship to spiral from the treetops. As they fell even further to the ground, Padme's world filled with horror. 

"No!" The throaty cry came from her lips as she saw Obi-Wan and her master fall from their chairs and towards the broken glass window of the cockpit. Her worry and panic was brief, though, as she felt a sharp pain in her left shoulder, and her world went black. 

Tbc...   
  



	5. Chapter 5

Revelations- Part 5   
Disclaimer and such in Part 1

* * *

Soft lips pushing air into her mouth stirred Padme to consciousness. When the life-giving breath finally reached her lungs, she started to cough and tried to sit up, but strong hands held her down. 

Qui-Gon's voice floated to her ears. 

"Padawan, you must keep down. You have a dislocated shoulder and a nasty bruise across your ribcage that I still need to mend." She felt his calloused hands gently hold down her uninjured shoulder to keep her from getting up. 

Only becoming aware of it upon Qui-gon's announcement, Padme felt the pain in her left shoulder grow to an overwhelming level. Taking a deep sigh and tapping into the Living Force around her, to ease both her pain and mind, she slowly opened her eyes. Kneeling above her was her Master. He didn't seem to be too badly injured but he did have a large gash across his right eyebrow, which barely missed his eye, and a bruise just below that on his cheekbone. Seeing his condition, she suddenly felt fear for all those who had been on their crashed ship. 

Qui-Gon felt his Padawan's thoughts turn to ones of concern for Obi-Wan, Rohhe, and the rest of the crew. Laying a hand tenderly on her tangled braids, he spoke to her in a soft tone. 

"Do not worry about Padawan Kenobi or Master Antol, they are both relatively all right; however, I'm sorry to say that some of the crew were not so lucky." He looked into her sad eyes. 

"How many?" She questioned quietly after several moments of reflective silence. 

"When our ship hit the ground another explosion came, killing four, three women and Captain Penkin, and injuring the remaining two." 

A sigh escaped Padme's lips. This was not news she wanted to hear. 

"I should have been able to protect them." Her frustration radiated off her like a tidal wave. She hated the fact that she had fallen unconscious. 

Qui-Gon continued to stroke her hair and tried to send her calming thoughts through the Force. 

"Padme...you know very well that the Force is present in all things. If it meant for those men and women to die, then there would be no possible way for us to change that, no matter the circumstances." He didn't wish to admonish her at a time as perilous as the one they were in, but he knew he had to help her to tap into her teachings and not feel guilty about the situation. 

"Yes Master." She whispered and closed her eyes to hold a moment of reverence for all who had perished in the crash. 

The sound of Qui-Gon's shifting body brought her back into the present. 

When she felt a hesitation in him, her eyes opened to seek his out. He looked down and paused a moment before speaking. 

"Padawan, I must get to tending your shoulder. Please, lie still for a moment." He paused again and met her eyes with a sad gaze, "This will hurt a great deal." 

Padme nodded and closed her again to wait for the inevitable pain. She braced herself when she felt her master's hands travel from her right shoulder to her left. 

Qui-Gon placed his left hand on the side of her collar bone and his right on her bicep. He hated having to hurt her, but there was no other option. Lining up the bones and his hands, Qui-Gon gave Padme's arm a forceful pushed towards it rightful socket, snapping the bones in place. 

Padme stifled a scream by biting her tongue and clenching her right hand into a fist. As the initial pain wore off and was replaced with a dull throbbing, a tear rolled down her cheek, but Qui-gon gently wiped it away. Letting out the breath she had been holding, she looked up towards her Master. Instantly, she saw the look of remorse on his face and quickly put on a smile, through her heavy breathing, to reassure him. 

"Really, Master, it wasn't that bad." Of course, he knew she was lying, but Qui-Gon played along with her charade and gave her a small smile in return. 

"Padawan, I hate to tell you that I'm not trough yet, but I still need to brace your arm to your side, so your shoulder can rest and heal, and bandage your abdomen." With a nod from her, he helped her sit up. It was then that Padme got to get a good look at her surroundings. 

The entire party was situated in a small glade, no bigger than fifteen meters across, under the thick forest canopy. Padme noticed that she and Qui-Gon were off towards the side of the clearing near a quiet little stream. She momentarily wondered why she had not picked up on the sound of the flowing water earlier, but discarded the thought when she looked across the stretch of grass to a scene that saddened her deeply. 

Obi-Wan and Rohhe, along with the two members of the crew (two men) who had survived the crash, were digging small graves for the four who had died. Padme's eyes scanned the four men across the way, assessing their injuries. The tallest of the two men from the flight crew, Lt. Zared, had blast burns running all the way down his right side, including his face, and had a large, blood-soaked bandage circling his head. The other man from the flight crew, Lt. Canton, was faring a bit better with just a few broken ribs and some burns down only one of his legs. Master Antol was probably the best off, though. He only had a large gash on his left cheek and a slightly bleeding cut just above his left knee. Padme, however, was the most concerned with Obi-Wan, and quickly ran her eyes over his form. He didn't seem to be too injured, but the blood soaking through the bandages on his bruised abdomen and the gashes, from the cockpit window, on his right arm and face, sent daggers through her heart 

The group of men had just finished covering the last grave, when Obi-Wan felt Padme's eyes on him. Quickly looking to where she was seated with Master Jinn, his face lit up. He was thrilled beyond words that she had awakened. To show her that all awkwardness was gone on his half, he gently reached out through their bond to probe her mind. 

~How are you feeling?~ He asked while setting down his makeshift shovel and giving her a small smile. 

~As best as I could given the circumstances, I suppose, but my shoulder and ribs are killing me. You should see how dark the bruise is that spans across my abdomen.~ 

Master Jinn glanced at Padme as her knelt in front of her to bandage her shoulder and ribcage, knowing quite well that she was deep in conversation with Obi-Wan. He could feel the bond between them starting to grow and anticipated that their current situation would only ensure that it would always be there, strong between them. Qui-Gon wasn't quite sure what the Force had in store for the two Padawans he and Rohhe had been carefully observing during their voyage to Iagone, but, through his meditations, he knew that Padme's path would always be intertwined with Obi-Wan's, no matter what happened in either of their lives. 

~Obi-Wan, I...~ Padme started, but was cut off. 

"Padawan, we cannot dwell here long. Can you stand?" Qui-Gon was now standing in front of her with his hands resting lightly on his hips. 

Padme stared up at him for a moment, a little bit lost from coming so quickly out of her mental conversation with Obi-Wan. 

"Um...I mean...yes, Master." Master Jinn stretched out his hand to help her to her feet. At first she was a bit dizzy, having been lying down for so long, but she soon got her footing and cleared her head. 

The group of six gathered in the center of the clearing where the water and the rest of their supplies were piled. 

"Alright," Master Antol spoke," we need to start out. I have already contacted the council and they are on their way, but as it took us one standard lunar cycle to get here, so will it be for them as well. We need to find some kind of permanent shelter and food source, protected and well away from our attackers. Is everyone agreed?" He looked around the small circle gathered around him. Everyone nodded their heads. 

"Good, now, let us get moving." With that, he gathered what he could carry comfortably, as did everyone else, and walked out of the small glade, the remaining five following closely behind him. Padme paused a moment, though, before leaving the tiny sanctuary, to look upon, for the last time, the four shallow graves of her lost comrades. 

The sun glittered through the canopy above, speckling light over the four mounds of dirt, while the calm trickling of the stream gave the grove a tranquility that finally filled Padme with the peace she needed to leave the four crewmembers behind. 

"Padme?" Obi-Wan reentered the clearing with a questioning look. 

"Coming." She called to him over her shoulder. 

"May the Force be with you." She whispered and turned to follow the group into the unfamiliar wilderness, leaving the four she wished she had gotten to know better to their eternal rest. 

Tbc... 


	6. Chapter 6

Revelations-Part 6   
Disclaimer and such in Part 1 

* * *

The small band of Flight crew and Jedi had walked through the thick jungle for almost five standard time marks, the entire way in silence so as to not attract their attackers. Since they really had no way in knowing which direction to take, the group trusted in Rohhe's wisdom and instinct to guide them. The path that he had chosen was a relatively easy one, but once in a while a stream, or fallen tree branch, would appear, making the trek a bit more difficult due to the fact that every member of the group was injured. 

Padme didn't mind the path too much, though, except for when obstacles would appear and she was not able to help anyone because of her own injuries. The thing that really bothered her was that one of her arms was entirely immobile. She did gain some comfort, though, knowing that with her Jedi skills it would be healed within only a couple of days. She loved the fact that even within the small amount of time they had traveled, the intense throbbing she had felt in her shoulder earlier had already subdued itself to a small ache, and with it out of the way, she had some time to really appreciate the scenery around her. 

The trees and sporadic wildlife they encountered took Padme's breath away. Growing up on Naboo, she loved nature and being outdoors so much that when she was little she would spend most of her days in the gardens around her parents estate, just lying in the tall grass and listening to the birds chirp. Her favorite thing to do, however, was to run into the woods and climb through the many branches of the native Nubian trees. Her parents even used to give her animal nicknames, because of her climbing skills and grace among nature. The lack of vegetation on Coruscant was the one thing that had really disappointed Padme when she arrived at the Jedi Temple for the first time. Sure, the Temple had its own gardens, but they seemed to be too fabricated to her. She loved the real thing and missed it terribly when she was confined to the planet-wide city she called home, which is why she liked to go on as many away missions as she could. 

When Padme first saw how rich in environmental life Iagone was, she was filled with an immediate calm. She was certain she felt that calm, even though they were in a hostile setting, because the beautiful jungle planet reminded her so much of Naboo. The differences between the plants and flowers of both worlds were incredibly minute. Yes, there still were some big discongruencies that she noticed, like the size of the trees and the somewhat fruity smell the flowers gave off, but she rather strangely felt like she had simply crash-landed on her home planet and not in some unknown, uncharted system on the edge of nowhere. 

With that thought in her head, Padme basked in the feeling of being home. She snapped out of her reverie, though, when she saw Lt. Zared start to stumble over a large, protruding root and fall towards the ground. 

Obi-wan had seen the action too and instantly reached forward to catch the man. 

"Are you alright?" He asked while grabbing the man's arm, concern filling his eyes. Zared did not look well off. The burns across his body were still greatly swelled and oozing, and he looked like he was going to pass out at any moment. 

"I'm sorry, Jedi, it's nothing." Zared tried to cover up his pain by quickly regaining his footing, but failed miserably. As a result, Obi-wan had to put his arms completely around the man, in a tight bear hug, to keep him steady. 

Rohhe glanced to his side, noticing the interaction between his Padawan and the Lieutenant. Pausing a moment the consider all courses of action, he stopped his walking and turned to face the group. 

"Perhaps, we should rest here for a few moments." When there were no signs of protest, he made his way towards Obi-wan and Zared. 

"Padawan, why don't you go sit down and meditate a while. I'll see to Lt. Zared's wounds." Rohhe placed his hand gently on Obi-wan's shoulder and gave him a warm smile. 

"Yes, Master." 

Obi-wan guided the wounded Lieutenant into Rohhe's arms and, before finding a spot to relax in, looked around to see if anyone else needed his help. Seeing that Qui-gon and Padme were already sitting down and redressing Lt. Canton's wounds, he decided that there was nothing left to do but settle himself in a comfortable location and rest while he could. 

Padme looked up from her tending of Canton's wounds to watch Obi-wan walk from where Master Antol was seated with Zared to a particularly large tree and sit down. Her eyes traveled over his bandages as he leaned back against the huge trunk for support. Observing that the blood had completely soaked through the gauzy material, Padme's brow furrowed in concern. 

Qui-gon glanced at his Padawan when he noticed that she was no longer helping him clean the burns on Canton's leg. Sensing her concern for Obi-wan, he gently probed her mind. 

~You know, Padawan, I can probably handle this task myself, if you want to go tend to Padawan Kenobi.~ He smiled as he saw her face lightly flush. She had not known that her thoughts were being projected so clearly to her Master. 

~I am sorry, Master.~ She turned back to tending Canton with Qui-gon, ~He is a dear friend and it difficult for me to see him so injured.~ 

Qui-gon placed a hand gently on Padme's right arm to stop her ministrations. 

"Go tend to your friend, Padme." He said while turning to look straight into her eyes. 

Padme stared back at her Master for a few moments to contemplate his generosity. He rarely ever permitted her to express her personal feelings towards those whom she was close to, when they were out in the public eye. She, however, didn't want to question him on the subject and lose her chance to speak privately with Obi-wan, so she gave him a gracious smile and stood up. 

Obi-wan looked up from his meditation when he heard Padme kneel down in front of him and felt her place a hand on his knee. 

Smiling, he covered her hand with his own. 

"Hey..." She said timidly, only then realizing that it was the first time they'd spoken to eachother, face to face, since "the incident." 

"Pad," He said while rubbing his thumb along the back of her hand, "no need for shyness around me. What happened has happened and there's nothing we can do about it." 

Padme smiled at him. She loved how he could completely smooth out any situation. Her smile turned into a frown, though, when she looked down at his torso. 

"Obi-wan, I really ought to look at that wound." He grimaced and caught her wrist when she placed her fingers on the edge of his tunic to get a better view of his injuries. 

"It's fine, really." He paused a moment after speaking and then let go of her wrist, realizing how obvious it was that he was lying. 

"Don't worry, Obi, I'll be very gentle." She grinned and turned away from him to remove medical supplies from the bag that was slung over her right shoulder. 

When she was finished placing the various ointments and rags around herself, Padme shifted back to face the now shirtless Obi-wan. Blushing slightly, she realized that she never before had seen him in such a threadbare state; not that she minded, of course, because she quickly observed that, despite the large bandage, he had a really nicely toned body. Padme immediately suppressed those thoughts with a grin, though, and focused herself on her present task. Gingerly, she started to peel the gauzy material away from her friend's waist, but what she found underneath it sickened her. Obi-wan's entire abdomen was a mass of dark bruises and still-bleeding cuts. 

"Obi-wan..." She whispered in a sad voice, as she completely unwrapped the material from around him and set it beside her. 

"It's looks far worse than it is, I assure you." He grinned in an attempt to make her feel better. 

"You're such a bad liar." She teased half-heartedly. 

"I'll take that as a compliment." He joked back and leaned forward a bit so she could properly clean all of his wounds. 

A comfortable silence fell between them as Padme cleansed his injuries with some of the water that they had taken from the stream she had been tended next to earlier. Occasionally, she pressed a little too hard on a gash and Obi-wan would tense up, but for the most part she was good to her word about being gentle. 

Something besides the state of her friend's body was troubling Padme, though. She knew she had to speak her thoughts to Obi-wan, but it took some time in coming. 

"Obi-wan..." She started with an sigh and stopped wiping away the dirt that had accumulated on his stomach. 

He unfocused his eyes from the ground and turned his gaze, instead, towards hers. 

"Yes?" He asked with a curious looked on his face. 

"I...," She hesitated a moment before continuing, "I'm sorry I avoided you earlier today." 

Obi-wan smiled. 

"Padme," His hand enveloped hers once again as he gently pulled her closer to him, "I'm guilty of the same thing. I avoided you as well, so there is no need for you to apologize. It was a senseless situation anyway." 

Padme shifted on her knees as she knelt to the right side of his outstretched legs. After a few moments of silence she met his eyes. 

"I know Obi, but," She paused and found she could no longer keep his gaze. Looking down, she continued, "I was so afraid when I saw you falling towards that window. I didn't know if you would get hurt or if you would even survive." 

Obi-wan squeezed her hand, but kept silent, sensing that she had more to say. 

"But what scared me more, was the thought of losing you when we were on bad terms. I mean, what if you died and the last words I said to you were ones of awkwardness and not of friendship?" Her troubled eyes finally sought his out again. 

Her words touched him greatly, because he held the same fear she did. 

Obi-wan reached forward and gently cupped her face with his right hand . 

"Padme," He whispered while stroking his thumb across her cheek, "No matter the circumstances, please remember, I will always care for you and you will always be my best friend." 

He leaned back a little to get a full view of her smiling face. 

"Well, then, Obi-wan Kenobi," She said grinning from ear to ear, "I hope that you too will always remember that I feel the exact same way towards you." 

With a shared smile, they went back to their comfortable silence so Padme could finish tending to Obi-wan's wounds. 

After a quarter of a standard mark, Rohhe stood up and gathered his bags. 

"Alright everyone," He said while turning to the group, "let's continue."   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	7. Chapter 7

Revelations-Part 7   
Disclaimer and Such in Part 1

  


Sorry it took me so long to get this chapter posted. I've been really busy with work and school and an oddly addicting computer game. :-P Anyways, I'd really like to thank everyone who has taken the time to give me feedback on this story. It really helps me to get motivated to write when I know that at least some people are reading and enjoying this. Again, thank you sooo much! 

Now, onto Chapter 7... 

* * *

They had walked for almost another standard time mark when they realized that it was starting to get rather dark. Night was beginning to fall and they still had no shelter. Not to mention, because of their wounds, the remaining members of the flight crew were completely exhausted. All of the Jedi were concerned especially for Lt. Zared, and, with each falter he made, their concern grew. Obi-wan, after observing the Lieutenant for quite some time, decided to speak his worries to his Master. He swiftly made his way to the front of the group. 

"I'm not sure if Lt. Zared will make it much further, Master," He spoke in a hushed tone so as not to be overheard by the subject of his conversation, "He has stumbled more than once since our last rest. Perhaps it is time we find a place to make camp for the night." 

"I am very well aware of that Padawan," Rohhe responded, "However, you know just as well as I that we need to travel as far away from the crash site as we possibly can." 

Obi-wan frowned. Of course he knew the logistics of them being as far away from the ship as possible, but he couldn't bear watching Zared suffer anymore. He hoped that he and his Master could come to a compromise. 

"Maybe we could travel just a few kilometers more and then..." His words were interrupted, though, when the overwhelming presence of hundreds of life forms flooded his mind. 

"Master..." Obi-wan started. 

"I sense it too Padawan." 

The group came to a halt. Rohhe and Obi-wan looked to Qui-gon and Padme, instantly knowing that they too had shared similar sensations. 

"Is there something wrong?" Canton questioned, completely unaware of the reasons as to why they had stopped. 

Padme, who was nearest to him, gently placed a hand on his forearm and, pressing her index finger against her lips, motioned for him to keep silent. 

~Padawans~ Qui-gon's voice entered Obi-wan's and Padme's minds ~Stay back here in the shadows and protect Zared and Canton if anything happens.~ 

Both Padawans nodded their consent and escorted the two lieutenants into the shadows of the large Iagonian trees. Rohhe and Qui-gon, on the other hand, crept forward stealthily, as only Master Jedi of their caliber could, and nestled themselves behind some rather dense bushes. Readying himself for whatever lay beyond them, Qui-gon gently parted the plants in the direction from which the life form readings were coming. To his an Rohhe's puzzlement, when they peered out into the large clearing, they saw and sensed nothing. 

~That's strange.~ Qui-gon spoke to Rohhe through his mind. 

~I still sense them, too, Qui-gon, but I cannot see them.~ Rohhe replied, just as confused. 

The two Masters communicated back to their Padawans what they were seeing. Padme's brow furrowed in surprise. Never before had they been wrong in their inclinations from the Force, and she was sure they weren't now, but the images and feelings the two were sending back to her and Obi-wan were indeed puzzling because she could still feel the life forms heavily. She was about to turn to Obi-wan and ask him what his thoughts were when something above her caught her eye. Looking up she let out an audible gasp. 

~Masters!~ She sent to them mentally. 

Both Rohhe and Qui-gon looked back to Padme with inquiring eyes. She simply answered their unspoken questions by pointing up. Following the direction of her finger to treetops, their eyes widened in shock. 

Approximately two hundred meters above them was a huge tree-top city, consisting of thousands of platforms and houses made out of wood and leaves, all connected by long swinging bridges. From where they were situated, they couldn't make out what the inhabitants looked like, but they could see that there were by far over three hundred of them. 

Qui-gon turned to the group. Looking around, he immediately noticed that he was the least injured. With that in mind, he knew that he was the one best suited to examine closer the village above them. 

"I'm going to climb up to get a better look." He whispered and looked towards the nearest tree to find a good place to start his ascent. 

~Master,~ Padme started in his mind, ~please be careful.~ Inferring from the way the creatures of the planet had attacked their ship, she didn't even want to think about what would happen if any one of the group were to be captured. Although she had complete faith in Qui-gon and his abilities, she worried about the fact that they knew absolutely nothing about the Iagonian race including how Force-sensitive they were; therefore, she was a bit hesitant of him getting any closer to them than they already were. 

~Do not worry so much Padawan.~ 

Qui-gon smiled to her and made a force-induced jump to a branch fifty meters above them. From there his continued his journey in a similar pattern until he reached his final destination: a branch just above what appeared to be the city's town square. 

Settling himself as comfortably as he could, Qui-gon opened his mind to the three Jedi he had left below him and allowed them to see what he was seeing. 

Qui-gon was a bit surprised when he finally got a good look at the inhabitants of the village. They were shaped similarly to any humanoid race, but to the average onlooker they would look like giant cats walking upright on their hind legs. There was definitely a large distinction between the males and females of the species (the males being at least a head taller and much huskier and of a inky black color and the females possessing a petite frame with a speckled coat of various browns, yellows, and blacks), but they all dressed alike in long green robes that extended just past their knees. 

The majority of the village was gathered in the middle of the town on the largest of its platforms. They were listening to another large cat who looked remarkably different from them with his much larger build, tan color, and giant black mane. Dressed a bit differently than the rest, in military armor, he stood on a tall platform and spoke in a loud voice to the Iagonians around him. 

By some miracle of the Force, Qui-gon recognized and understood the language the man was speaking. 

"Citizens," The large cat boomed with his arms raised above his head in an attempt to hush the crowd, "Some of you may have heard the rumors that strange attackers have landed here." He paused to let the murmur of agreement move through the crowd. 

"Well," He continued, "King Aurlytis has sent me to inform you that these rumors are true." 

Gasps of fear arose from the unsettled villagers. 

"Calm...Calm," He roared, " There is no need to fear these people. They are most likely injured and running from all of our civilizations. We have already dispatched many troops to locate them and bring them to court; however, His Majesty still needs your help and participation in the capture effort. All he asks is that if any one of you sees one of these invaders that you tell the authorities immediately. There will be a great reward in store for everyone who helps us in this. If you have any further questions there will be guards located in every village from here to the capital. Thank you for your attention." 

When the gathering started to disperse, Qui-gon made his way back to the forest floor below. Completely in shock by what she had seen through her Master's mind, Padme watched as he made his descent from the treetops. She never expected such hostility from the people here, but, in a way, she understood it. She knew that Iagonians had never before seen a race other than their own, at least as far as the council knew, and could not have possibly known the intentions of her and her fellow Jedi. 

The soft thudding of Qui-gon's boots brought everyone out of their stunned states. Taking a quick sigh, Qui-gon took a moment to digest all that he had just witnessed. Turning to the group, he spoke in a matter-of-fact tone. 

"I suggest we leave here as soon as possible." 

Everyone nodded their agreement to this, and, with one last tentative look up to the village aloft, they headed out. 

* * *

After the group had walked for only a couple more kilometers, the sun had disappeared and night was officially upon them. One thing that they had not expected, was the chill that had come with the setting of the sun. As they walked on in the dark, they noticed that, while the day had been extremely hot, the night was equally as extreme in the direction of freezing weather. 

Padme wrapped her cloak around her as best she could to keep out the bite of the icy wind, but, no matter how hard she tried, the cold still ran straight to her bones. She silently wondered about the state of the other members of the group in relation to the temperature, because if she, someone who had grown up with the freezing cold winters of Naboo, was having such a hard time keeping warm, she couldn't imagine how the others were fairing. She knew that if they didn't find some sort of shelter soon then they were going to be in for a really rough night. 

Padme's silent prayers must have been heard, for no less than two minutes after her thoughts turned from the weather to shelter, Rohhe sent the group a telepathic message saying that he had possibly found a suitable place for them stay for the duration of their time on the beautiful jungle planet. 

When they reached the spot, a hundred meters in front of them, where Master Antol was standing, the group looked up a to see a lone tree house perched among some of the highest branches the Iagonian trees could offer. 

Qui-gon looked the tree, that was supporting the house, up and down and spoke to the group. 

"I'll climb up to make sure everything is clear." He made another force-induced jump up the tall tree trunk and onto the wrap-around balcony of the house. 

It was obvious to Qui-gon as soon as he stepped onto the premise that no one had been living there for quite some time. Dust covered everything in sight. He entered through tattered curtains into the main room of the household. Glancing around, he took note of the fanciful trappings of the house, but quickly moved towards the main entrance to find some sort of contraption that would allow the group below access to the home in which he was standing. 

Qui-gon felt a strange yearning from the Force to press a large, flat button situated to the left of the entryway doors. Pushing it, he looked outside to watch its effect. A slight creaking sound verberated through the treetops. Slowly, wide wooden planks emerged from the tree to form a spiral staircase down its trunk. With some trepidation the group below started the long ascent up to what they hoped would be their "home" while they waited for the rescuing Jedi to arrive. 

As soon as the group reached the balcony surrounding the house, Qui-gon again pressed the large, flat button and the planks retracted themselves, showing no evidence of even being there in the first place. 

With all of its members gathered, the group finally took a good look at the interior of their home. The room they were currently standing in spanned across a good portion of the house's area as a sunken living room. The couches and chairs at the center of the room were all draped with white cloths that, due to the dust and grime, were now almost black. To the right of the living room, on the slightly raised level of the house, was the kitchen and dining table. Although the dust clouded all of the intricacies of the designs on both the table and the cabinets and counters in the kitchen, one could easily tell that if they got polished up a bit, they would be extravagant. This house was obviously some sort of summer retreat for a considerably rich noble or politician. Finally, to the left of the the kitchen was a small hallway that connected two rather spacious bedrooms (one with one large bed and the other with two smaller ones) and one modest refresher. 

Looking around, Master Antol and Master Jinn grimaced at how much work they would have to do to get the house in working order, but, they figured, that was why they had Padawans. 

With a sigh, Rohhe addressed the group. 

"Okay, everyone, let's start cleaning."   
  
  



	8. Chapter 8

Revelations-Part 8   
Disclaimer and such in Part 1 

* * *

Obi-wan walked through the small hallway that connected the bedrooms and stepped down into the sunken living room where Padme was seated on the larger of the two couches. It had been three days since they had arrived at the little treetop house, each passing with little disturbance. The quiet hadn't bothered anyone, though. In fact, the repose they experienced during those days actually created the perfect setting for everyone to heal. Qui-gon and Rohhe were completely better, Padme still had on her bandages but fervently believed she didn't need them anymore, Canton and Obi-wan were almost completely healed, no longer needing to change the dressings on their wounds everyone few hours, and Zared was making a surprising recovery but was still bedridden. 

Obi-wan let out a small laugh as he moved to sit next to Padme on the couch. She was hunched over her own left shoulder, picking angrily at the bandage that restricted it from moving. 

"What's so funny, Kenobi?" She said a bit testily as she looked up from her work with a frown. 

Obi-wan's smile grew larger at her anger, but he managed to bite back another laugh. 

"Nothing...you know, it'd probably be okay if we took that thing off." He gestured to the offending material. 

As soon as he said that, Padme's face lost all its anger and instantly lit up. 

"I agree," She said excitedly but paused and let out a small sigh, "but Qui-gon told me not to take it off for at least another day or two." 

Obi-wan nodded and leaned back against the back of the couch and started to meditate, content to let her keep the thing on. Padme's brow scrunched up in thought. She was completely frustrated. She wanted that cast off and she wanted it off right away. She could feel in every fiber of her body that she was healed. Besides, she figured Qui-gon was just being overly cautious, and hadn't considered her remarkable healing skills when he had told how long she'd have to keep the bandage on. 

"Oh what the heck," Obi-wan opened one eye to look in Padme's direction when she started speaking," Qui-gon won't be back from hunting for another couple of hours and if I can get along just fine without the dressings when he's not here, then when he gets back I can prove to him that I don't need it anymore." Padme smiled at her conclusion. 

Obi-wan smirked. He was glad he was still a Padawan so he could be a bit mischievous from time to time and go along with fellow Padawans on crazy ideas and not get into too much trouble. He turned to face Padme and placed a hand on her arm. 

"Alright," He studied her arm and reached out with the Force to get a better reading of how her shoulder was healing, "just relax your arm while I remove the bandage." 

He slowly unwrapped the gauzy, white material to expose her slightly bruised arm. Padme grimaced a little at the sight of the bruising, but was relieved that she didn't feel any pain when she tried to move her shoulder. When Obi-wan finished unwrapping her arm, Padme slowly stretched it out in front of her to try to get her muscles used to moving again. 

"It feels a little stiff." She said with a frown. 

Obi-wan eyes impishly lit up. 

"You know, we could probably remedy that problem...if you're up to it that is." He grinned knowing his last few words would strike a nerve in her. 

Padme narrowed her eyes. 

"I'm up for anything Kenobi." 

"Good." 

He grabbed her by her right wrist and pulled her out to the wrap-around balcony. It was when Obi-wan started to remove his large brown cloak and outer tunics that Padme caught on to what his idea for stretching out her arm muscles was. 

"Oh, you are in for it now Obi-wan." She said with a smile that reached both of her ears. She then too started to remove her cloak and outer tunics. 

Obi-wan loved the banter she constantly threw at him. It really helped to make all situations they found themselves in much more enjoyable. 

"We'll just see Miss Naberrie." He said while hanging up his previously removed cloak over the balcony railing and preparing himself to jump over it and into the tree limbs. 

"That's **_Jedi_** Naberrie to you." Padme grabbed her saber from her belt and flipped over his head and onto the branch he had been headed for. She stood in ready stance with her blue-violet saber lit and a huge smile on her face. 

Obi-wan let out a small laugh. 

"I guess you got that levitation problem fixed." He winked and mirrored her movements, flipping over her head and onto the branch behind her. Lighting his blue saber, he raised an eyebrow at her. 

"Ready?" He questioned teasingly. 

"Strange, I was just about to ask you the same thing." They both grinned and, putting their sabers to the lowest setting possible, readied themselves for the sparring session that was about to take place. 

Being the younger and less experienced of the two, Padme waited for Obi-wan to attack first. Through all of her training, she had learned that Jedi are defensive fighters and never the aggressor; therefore, whomever had the most to learn in a sparring session was supposed to take the defensive stance. 

Obi-wan lunged towards Padme with lightening speed. Her reflexes were honed enough, though, to sense it coming and to jump onto a higher branch, but, following her movements to the new branch and connecting sabers with her, Obi-wan didn't skip a beat. 

They parried for a few moments until Obi-wan got a good kick in to the back of Padme's knees making her fall down a few branches. She recovered quickly, though, and, during her descent, grabbed onto a nearby tree limb and by swinging under it, landed back on her feet. 

Obi-wan smiled and jumped down to her branch to meet her. 

"Not bad...not bad..." He said with an irritating smirk on his face. 

"I haven't even warmed up yet." Padme countered and waited for her friend's next attack. 

She didn't have to wait long. A few moments later, he crouched down and attempted a kick to bring her to her knees. Padme dodged it without difficulty, however, by jumping backwards and kicking off the huge tree trunk to flip over Obi-wan's head. Their sabers clashed mid-air. 

They continued sparring for a while, equally matched, but Obi-wan could tell that Padme was beginning to get tired and knew that soon he would best her. 

Padme landed on a wide tree branch and quickly turned to face her opponent. She knew she was tiring, but she would rather be tortured than admit it to Obi-wan. They stood facing eachother with grins on their faces. Their grins quickly faded, though, as the presence of five life forms came into their minds. 

"Obi-wan..." Padme started but Obi-wan held up his hand, quieting her. 

Obi-wan looked around, trying to determine where the life forms were coming from. He could sense that they weren't far off. When he saw them about two hundred meters away, casually walking through the branches in his and Padme's direction, Obi-wan instantly grabbed Padme by the shoulders and spun her around to pin her behind him against the tree trunk. Both of them concentrated on pulling the force around them to conceal their presence and make themselves invisible to the naked eye. As soon as they summoned the Force, though, the five Iagonians jerked their heads in the direction of Padme and Obi-wan and looked directly at them. One of the five ( all men ) started shouted, obviously giving orders to the remaining four. Obeying the leaders shouts, the other four crouched down onto all fours and started to sprint towards Obi-wan and Padme with teeth barred. 

"Shit." Obi-wan muttered and grabbed Padme's hand. 

They sprinted as fast as they could through the trees, but the natives to the planet were obviously much more skilled among the branches than they were, because only after a few moments they were almost upon the fleeing couple. Padme and Obi-wan drew as much strength as they could from the Force to keep themselves from stumbling or falling to the ground, but they were quickly tiring due to the fact that they had spent all of their energy in their earlier sparring session. 

Obi-wan had no idea where he was leading the two of them, he was just trying to keep them from getting captured by the attackers that were only a few meters behind them. 

In the middle of his sprint, Obi-wan almost saw the furred hand, that came out from behind a tree trunk, too late. He ducked out of its way and reignited his saber, ready to defend his and Padme's lives to the death. Padme did the same. 

"I am not here to hurt you...come with me if you want to live." A petite female Iagonian stepped out from behind the tree trunk and offered Obi-wan her hand. Padme looked behind her. She could clearly see their attackers approaching. She and Obi-wan needed to make a decision and they needed to make it fast. Moving her free hand quickly, Padme grabbed onto Obi-wan's arm and gave it a tight squeeze, assuring him that whatever action he chose she would trust and follow him. 

Obi-wan's brow furrowed. He followed Padme's gaze to the five attackers and sighed. Turning back to the female Iagonian, he clenched his teeth and placed his hand in hers. The creature's face twisted into what one could only assume to be a smile as she turned and pulled the two young Jedi straight through what had appeared to be a solid tree trunk and into darkness. 

tbc... 

**AUTHOR'S NOTES******

Okay, I know this a short chapter to give ya'll after not writing for a couple weeks, but rest assured. I have the other half of this almost done. (I have four pages of a hand-written, small print, outline for this chapter and this section doesn't even make up a whole page of it.) I just didn't want to leave you guys with nothing for sooo long. The next part will be up within the next couple of days, I promise! 

Now onto thanks: 

**Sassy**: Thank you sooo much for all the compliments and reviews you have given me! Plus, I really appreciate the shout outs for me to continue my story in the author's notes of your story "An Indecent Proposal" (get another chapter out soon please!) ( shameless plug: check out sassy's awesome story at: ) 

**Jedi Keladry**: Lol, thank you for being "patient and civilized" while waiting for this next installment. All the wonderful words of encouragement you've given me have really help me get inspired to write. And you better get another chapter for "Hope's Sanctuary" out soon or else! :-P ( another shameless plug: check out Keladry's incredible story at: ) 

**Saskia**: Thank you for all the fantastic words you have said about me and my story at your site. I really appreciate them. ( Yet another shameless plug : check out Saskia's kick ass Obidala website at www.obidala.com ) 

AND THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO IS READING THIS. THANK YOU ALL FOR THE SUPPORT!!!   
  
  
  
  



	9. Chapter 9

Revelations-Part 9   
Disclaimer and such in Part 1

I don't know why, but I picture Illyria with an British accent. Anyway, read down and see what you guys think. ENJOY!!! 

* * *

Padme and Obi-wan looked around in amazement. From the texture of the circular wall around them, it was obvious that they actually were inside the trunk of the tree. Padme stared behind her at the nonexistent door they had come through. Unless one knew it was there, there would be no possible way of guessing. The wall seemed flawless. Looking around, they saw that they were in a one-room sitting area. In the middle of the space were two small couches and a spacious plush chair on top of a large area rug. Placed in the center between the couches and chair was a low wooden table polished to a beautiful shine. Sporadically along the round wall hung various paintings, some of Iagonian inhabitants, some of the wildlife, and some of historical events. In what would be the four corners of the room if it had been square, stood four tall light sources that the small female Iagonian had lit when the three had entered. 

Still very wary of the intentions of their new found "savior", Obi-wan and Padme gripped their lightsabers tightly at their sides, ready to use them at any moment. The native looked at them with curiosity for a moment then gestured with her hand for them to sit down on one of the couches. They sat down with a bit of reluctance, all the while keeping a watchful eye on the woman in front of them. 

"Like I said earlier, I am not going to hurt you." She said to them over her shoulder. Perking up an ear, she leaned towards the invisible door to the outside. After listening for a few moments she turned back to the two Jedi sitting on the couch. 

"They're moving away from this area," she paused, "at least for now, but they will be searching for you all night." She walked over to a small counter and reached into a cabinet to take out two wooden cups and a jug of some sort of clear liquid. 

She set the cups on the center wooden table and poured the liquid into them, then sat down onto the couch opposite Obi-wan and Padme. 

"You really ought to stay in here a while." 

Obi-wan leaned forward towards the woman, trying to get a reading from her as to what her true intentions were. 

"Who are you?" He asked while scrunching up his brow a bit. 

The woman appeared to smile again. 

"My name is Illyria. My husband is what I think your race would call the town magistrate or leader." Padme's eyes widened in surprise at Illyria's divulgence. 

"You two are strange looking creatures," She eyed Obi-wan up and down, "What are your names?" 

"My name is Padme and this," Padme lifted her free hand towards Obi-wan, "is Obi-wan." 

"Illyria," She continued after a moment, "if your husband is the magistrate of your village, then why did you help us?" 

Illyria's face lost its airy quality at Padme's words. They were starting to get into serious topics of discussion. 

"Well," She started slowly, "I guess I first should tell you that I am a scientist and am always looking for ways to expand my culture's knowledge." 

Padme and Obi-wan listened silently, waiting for her to continue. 

"But the real reason I have decided to help you is that I completely disagree with how foreigners to Iagone are treated." 

Obi-wan's eyebrows shot up. 

"You mean there have been others before us." 

Illyria let out a small laugh, the mirth returning to her features. 

"Why, of course there have been others. Where do you think we learned our language?" A sad shadow then crossed her face, "Unfortunately, though, none have survived long enough on this planet to report back to their superiors any of their findings." 

A short silence fell over the group as Obi-wan and Padme considered Illyria's grave words. Illyria broke them out of their trance, however, with a slight cough. 

"Well, yes, it was quite sad, at least I believe so. I doubt any of my other colleagues would agree upon that fact." She shook her head slightly to refocus her train of thought, "Anyway, the point is, I do not want to see the same fate fall upon the two of you. I will help you in any way possible." 

Padme shyly looked up from her thoughts as Illyria finished her monologue. 

"Illyria," She started quietly, "isn't that dangerous for you? I mean, if your husband found out..." 

Illyria cut her off by raising a fur-covered hand. 

"There are always sacrifices one must be willing to make for just causes." Again, a silence fell over the group. 

After a few moments had passed, Illyria stood up and cleared the untouched cups. Walking back to the counter, she paused to look at a small clock-like structure on the wall. 

"It will be nightfall in a few hours. I really ought to get you two some provisions for your stay here." 

Obi-wan started to protest saying that it really wasn't necessary, but Illyria wouldn't hear any of it. 

"Stay here until I get back; it may take quite some time." 

Padme and Obi-wan gave her one last look before she headed back through the invisible door. 

Obi-wan stood up from his seat on the couch. Running his hand through his short cropped hair, he paced the floor for a few moments and then turned his searching eyes upon Padme. 

"Do you think we can trust her?" 

Padme sighed. 

"I don't know, Obi-wan." She left the couch and started to examine the door to find the seams. 

"I would like to trust her, "She continued after dropping her hands from the wall and giving up on finding the seams, "and I feel nothing from her but a genuine want to help. Still..." She trailed off in thought. 

Obi-wan nodded absently as he considered Padme's words and walked the small circle of the enclosure. He, too, had only felt compassion emanating from the small woman, but something about the whole Iagonian race set him on edge. 

"Obi-wan," Padme brought him out of his reverie by placing a hand on his forearm, "what about when we drew the Force around us to conceal ourselves. Those five men seemed to latch onto that right away." 

Obi-wan frowned. That was something that he had noticed and was bothered by as well. He had tried to write it off as a coincidence, but he knew better. The thought of the natives of the planet being able to hone into any creature that used the Force brought an uneasy feeling to his stomach. 

"I don't know Padme," He brought his gaze to her uncertain eyes, "I wondered about that myself. Perhaps Illyria will be able to inform us better of the capabilities of her race." 

Padme nodded and turned to sit back onto the couch. 

"Either way, though," Obi-wan grabbed her hand to bring her back to his side, "we probably shouldn't use any facet of the Force until we find out the answers to our questions." He squeezed her hand in reassurance and let her continue her course towards the couch. 

The rest of the afternoon was spent in silence, as each Jedi contemplated their situation. 

* * *

It wasn't until a couple of hours passed and nightfall came that Illyria returned. Thinking she was an enemy when she walked through the invisible door, Obi-wan and Padme stood up immediately and ignited their sabers. She held up her hands in surrender. 

"I give." Illyria said with a slight smile, but Padme could see the fear she held in her eyes when she looked at their sabers. 

When they saw that no one had followed the small Iagonian through the door, the two Jedi slowly lowered their weapons. 

Illyria moved away from the door, nervously glancing back and forth between the Padawans. She first walked to the small counter where she had stored the cups earlier and set down the large woven bag that was slung over her left shoulder. Second she moved to a small armoire that was situated behind the couch Obi-wan and Padme had been sitting on. She gingerly grasped the door handle and swung it open to reveal the objects contents. 

"I'm not quite sure how your bodies adapt to weather, but if you need something to keep yourselves warm tonight, there are some cloaks in here." Illyria then moved back to the bag she had placed on the counter. 

Obi-wan and Padme glanced at eachother. The drastic change in Illyria's mood and personality was very strange. Before it had seemed like she regarded them as friends, but now it was more like she viewed them as serious threats. The Jedi didn't mind much, though, that the Iagonian had developed a slight fear of them. It actually helped comfort them, knowing that she wouldn't try to hurt them with that fear in her mind. Padme hoped, however, that something bad hadn't happened to their new found friend when she had gone back into their village. 

All thoughts were interrupted, though, when Illyria snapped out of her distanced state and regained her friendly composure. 

"Now," She started and turned to the two Jedi with a large smile on her face, "I managed to sneak some really fine dishes out of my kitchen tonight. I hope your species' dining tastes are similar to ours." 

She unpacked five polished wood containers and laid them out on the small center table. Next, she took out the two cups and the clear liquid again along with two plates and some eating utensils and set them next to the containers. 

"My kind generally eats various types of meats, but there are some fruits and vegetables that we consider food." She started to remove the lids of the containers, "I have brought you two main course platters, one consisting mainly of one of our native birds and the other consisting of one of the rarest, and tastiest, fish we have here on Iagone." 

Illyria removed the lids of those dishes to reveal two scrumptious looking meals. The scent of each was positively delicious and enough to make even Obi-wan's mouth water. 

"In these three," She lifted the lids of the remaining three, "Are some of wild fruits and vegetables." They too looked amazing. 

Despite the look and smell of all the food, and the loud growling present in their stomachs, Obi-wan and Padme were more than wary about eating the offered rations. If they didn't even know if they could trust Illyria, how could they trust food that she brought for them. 

In an attempt to figure out if the food was poisoned or not, Padme reached out to probe Illyria's mind. 

"I would not do that if I were you." Illyria spoke and looked directly into Padme's eyes. Obi-wan jerked his head towards Padme in surprise. 

"If the hunters sensed what you were about to do, they would be upon us in no time." She spoke matter-of-factly and turned back to preparing dinner plates for the two Jedi. 

With that, Padme and Obi-wan's questions were answered. The Iagonians could definitely sense the Force and they, along with Master Jinn and Master Antol, would not be able to use for the duration of their stay on the planet. 

"Come now, and have some dinner." Illyria looked up after a moment when both Padme and Obi-wan made no move to sit down and eat. 

"Oh really, for the last time I will not nor never try to hurt you." She stood up and huffed to get her own cloak that had been hanging on a hook by the invisible door. 

After a moment she seemed to calm down and compose herself. 

"You may stay here for the night," She said while straightening out the creases in her cloak against her body, "The search party will be out all night, so I would not even think about leaving until dawn if I were you. And when you do leave, be absolutely sure to travel not by the treetops but by ground. Trust me, my kind is not too fond of the solid earth and will not venture down there long to chase you." 

Padme frowned. They would have to stay in that room all night, and without use of the Force. Sure, she was very grateful for the sanctuary Illyria offered them, but she wished she could at least send a telepathic message to Qui-gon to inform him of her and Obi-wan's situation. 

She sighed. 

"I wish I could contact my Master." She whispered to Obi-wan and went to sit down on the couch. 

Illyria's ears perked up and eyes widened. 

"You two are slaves?" She questioned with a shocked look on her face. 

Padme and Obi-wan couldn't help but laugh at that comment. 

Obi-wan grunted softly and tried to hide a smile. 

"Sometimes it feels like it." He said under his breath. Padme snorted and gently elbowed him the ribs. 

"No, actually..." She started and then went in to explaining to Illyria the Jedi and their hierarchical system. Illyria was very intrigued. She loved the idea of a way to harness the life force that resided in and around every creature. She was also very surprised to hear that the Jedi were keepers of the peace. When Obi-wan explained that that was the reason why they were on Iagone in the first place, Illyria got a sad look on her face and profusely apologized for her kind's actions. 

"I cannot apologize enough for how you have been treated," She looked down with shame, "To think you were only coming to extend the hand of peace. I truly hope you do not believe that all of my brothers and sisters are such savages." 

Padme placed a hand on Illyria's fur-covered one. 

"Not at all." She said with a smile. Illyria smiled back. She seemed only then to realize the time. 

"Goodness!" She abruptly stood up and grabbed her empty woven bag and slung it over her shoulder, "I must go now." She appeared to be very frightened. 

"My husband will have my hide if I don't make it home before curfew." She was about to walk through the door, but realized her manners and turned back to say goodnight to the two bewildered Jedi, "Please, come here anytime you need help. You see that large rope button over there," She pointed to Obi-wan's left, "if you press it I, and only I, will be informed immediately that you are here and I will arrive as soon as possible." 

She then turned to leave. 

"Illyria," Padme's words stopped the small cat-like woman. Padme paused a second to smile to her, "Thank you...for everything." 

lllyria's eyes brightened. 

"It was my honor." With that she stepped through the invisible door and was gone. 

Obi-wan and Padme turned to eachother after Illyria's exit and then glanced back at the table that held the various delicious looking entrees. The grumbles that erupted from both of their bellies at the sight of the food made each of them laugh with delight and head towards the small table. When they were sure that there was nothing wrong with the food, Obi-wan and Padme sat down to eat. It tasted as wonderful as it had smelled. Afterwards, they had to agree that what they had just eaten was one of the best meals they had ever had. 

When they were finished eating, Obi-wan stood up and cleared the plates and containers and set them on the counter. After trying to arrange them as neatly as possible, he gave up and turned to face his fellow Padawan. 

"We should really get some sleep." He said while walking over to where Padme was seated. 

"I'll take the first watch." He looked down at her, "Why don't you get some sleep." 

Padme could tell that Obi-wan was stressed about not being able to contact Master Antol, but without the Force she didn't know what she could do to calm him down. 

"Come here." She said stretching her hand out to him. He took it with a curious look on his face and let her lead him to a sitting position with his back to her on the floor in front of her. Placing her hands on his shoulders, Padme felt the hard knots in his muscles gathered there. She started the deep tissue shoulder massage with a grimace. 

Obi-wan sighed and closed his eyes as he let Padme's fingers work their magic. It was just what he needed after all that had happened to them during the day. He loved the fact that Padme had the uncanny ability to know exactly what what he needed at any given moment. It was almost like they shared the same brain at times. Obi-wan opened his eyes at that thought. When had he and Padme become so intimately close that they knew eachother's thoughts? His brow furrowed, but didn't have any further time to think about the subject as Padme opened a conversation. 

"I'm glad that you're the one here with me, Obi-wan." She said with an unfocused gaze as she continued her ministrations. 

Obi-wan's eyebrows twitched in wonder. He was touched by her words, but didn't know why it would matter who she was in their current situation with. As he thought it, though, he realized that he felt the same way. He wouldn't want anybody else with him either. 

"Me too Pad." He smiled and started to think about what would happen to them when they returned to their treetop home. 

"I am not looking forward to lectures we're going to receive tomorrow, though, when Masters Antol and Jinn find out how we got ourselves into this sticky little situation." 

Padme groaned and leaned forward to rest her forehead on the crown of Obi-wan's head. She had completely forgotten that they would still be at the house they called home if they had not ventured out and decided to show off to eachother. She knew Qui-gon would go ballistic. 

"Well," She started hopefully, "maybe they won't make us do our hard time until we get off this planet." 

Obi-wan laughed at the comment. It was extremely wishful thinking. 

"We'll see." He reached up and placed a hand on Padme's, "Okay it's time to for you to get some sleep so I can get to my watch." 

He stood up and walked over to the armoire and retrieved a thick black cloak. 

"Here." He said while gently covered his friend's form as she fully stretch out onto the couch. 

"Don't forget to wake me up midway through the night." She reminded with a smile. 

"Oh, don't worry," He smirked, "I plan on sleeping sometime tonight." 

She laughed and closed her eyes, "Goodnight Obi-wan" 

Obi-wan's eyes warmed up at the sight of her peaceful form. 

"Goodnight Padme." He whispered, while leaning down and kissing her on the forehead. He didn't know why he decided to kiss her, it had just felt like a natural and perfect thing to do at the moment. Nonetheless, he presently didn't know how to define what their relationship was and how he viewed it, which confused him quite a bit. 

Obi-wan gently smoothed out Padme's hair and turned to sit on the other couch on the opposite side of the room. Sitting down, he began his vigil and silently wished he could mediate to clear his mind and focus his thoughts. 

'Oh well,' He thought with a sigh, 'I'll have all night to do this the old fashioned way.' 

With that he closed his eyes and opened his ears to keep watch over the little sitting room, all the while trying to work out his changing feelings for the woman sleeping no more than two meters in front of him. 

tbc... 

THANK YOU ALL FOR READING THIS!!! I HOPE YOU ENJOYED IT!!!   
  
  
  
  
  
  



	10. Chapter 10

Revelations-Part 10   
Disclaimer and such in Part 1 

* * *

Padme yawned as the night came to an end. Putting down the book she had found during a fit of boredom she experienced after Obi-wan had woken her up, she stretched and turned her gaze upon the Padawan sleeping on the couch next to her. She couldn't help but smile at the site of him. Some time during the night he had thrown the cloak completely off himself and had laid out flat on his belly, one arm and one leg dangling over the edge of the couch. Glancing at the clock structure on the wall, Padme noted that six time marks had gone by from the time she had started her vigil. It was almost time to wake Obi-wan, but she still had some time to finish the chapter she was on. 

When daybreak finally rolled around, Padme stood up and arched her back. Stretching once again, she took one last yawn before making her way over to the couch that held her favorite Padawan. With a smile, she knelt down in front of his face so their eyes were on the same level. Taking the discarded cloak off of the floor next to her, she grabbed one of its sleeves and began to gently tickle it against his nose. As Obi-wan sleepily batted away the annoyance from his face, Padme bit down on her tongue to keep herself from laughing. When she was sure that he was fully asleep again, she brought the cloak sleeve back to his nose. This time, however, Obi-wan's Jedi senses kicked in. Opening his eyes in a flurry, he grabbed Padme's wrist and threw her to the ground. Padme frowned as she looked at her friend's hands pinning her own to the floor above her head. 

"Good morning to you too, sleepy head." She grumbled. 

Obi-wan quickly let go of Padme's wrists and helped her up from the floor. 

"Sorry Padme," He said with a laugh, "but you deserved it after trying to wake me up in such a childish manner." 

"Childish or not," She crossed her arms while trying to keep a serious look on her face but failed miserably, "I'll take any punishment in exchange for the pricelessly cute look you make in your sleep when you snore." 

"Besides," She continued as she ducked a pillow that flew at her from across the room, "Can you think of any other way to wake you up that would have been just as fun for me?" 

Obi-wan's gaze unconsciously flicked to Padme's smiling lips. 

"Perhaps," He said while mentally shaking himself and forcing his eyes to meet hers, "However, I suggest that you keep a close watch while you sleep from now on." 

Padme laughed at his half-hearted threat. 

'Nothing like some good banter to wake one up in the morning.' She though absent-mindedly. Only then did it occur to her that it was morning and that they should've started their journey back to the tree house already. Her mood quickly sobered with the realization. 

"The sun is almost completely up so we should probably start heading back." She said as she started to straighten up the room so as to not alert anyone of their presence ever being there. 

"I agree." Obi-wan mirrored her actions and started to straighten up as well, putting their sleeping cloak back into the small armoire. 

When they were finished they stood in front of the invisible door with some trepidation. Without the Force they couldn't tell what was lying on the other side of the exit. Working up her nerves, Padme took a deep breath and moved to step through the door. 

Obi-wan was about to follow her but instead grabbed her hand and pulled her back. 

"Wait, Padme," She turned to face him with confusion in her eyes. 

"Well," He continued with a bit of embarrassment," even though you might be able to climb down this rather tall tree easily without the aid of the Force, I'm not quite sure that I would fair so well." 

"Oh..."Padme nodded with understanding and turned to look around the room and figure out a solution to their problem. Her eyes lit up with success when she spotted one of the sharp dinner knives they had used the previous night. She quickly rushed to the counter on the far wall and grabbed the large utensil. 

Turning back to Obi-wan, she explained her idea. 

"I can go down the trunk first, and on my way, carve hand and foot holdings for you." She seemed very proud of her innovation. Obi-wan, although still proud of Padme's ingenuity, was a bit apprehensive since it was his life at risk in the situation. After a few minutes of Padme coaxing him, though, he finally agreed. 

Once again they found themselves standing in front of the indiscernible door, trying to work up their nerves to exit the small room. Being the smallest and most stealthy among the branches, Padme had decided it would be best for her to leave first since she had the least chance of being seen. Desperately trying to push back her nervousness, she let out a breath and walked through the unseen exit. To her relief there was no living creature in sight. 

Taking one last good glance around the canopy to really make sure that there were no other living creatures in the immediate vicinity, Padme swiftly reached her hand back through the tree trunk to let Obi-wan know that the coast was clear. He emerged seconds later. 

Moving as silently as they could without calling the Force to their aid, they quickly slipped behind a thick patch of vegetation to conceal their forms while they made their descent. Padme crouched down, finding a prime spot to start carving the grooves for the hand and foot holding, while Obi-wan kept a sharp watch on their surroundings. After she made a few good deep notches, she started to climb down and Obi-wan soon followed. Their progress down the trunk of the tree was slow, but they eventually got to the bottom of their three hundred meter drop after an hour and a half of the same tedious process. 

When they reached the ground, both collapsed against the trunk in pure exhaustion. For Jedi with full access to the Force that would have a been a formidable task, but for two who had to only rely on the raw gifts they were born with, it was a completely brutal one. Padme and Obi-wan were in shock that they had even been able to pull it off without calling on the Force for help. 

As Obi-wan caught his breath and swallowed his relief, for he knew that they weren't home yet, he turned to look at his panting best friend next to him. 

"Well," He said with a smile to try and lighten the mood, "let's not do that again anytime soon." 

Padme grinned between breaths and nodded, as she wasn't sure she could quite speak yet. 

They rested against the trunk of the tree for a quarter of an hour until they were both well enough to make the journey back to the tree house. 

"Ready?" Obi-wan said while standing up and extending his hand to help Padme do the same. 

"Yes," She put her hand in his and let him help her up, "let's please get back to the house as soon as possible." 

Looking around for a moment, Obi-wan discerned in which direction the tree house was. 

"Ah," He said seeming to figure out from which area they came, "this way." 

He headed off to their left, Padme close behind him. 

* * *

It was another hour before Obi-wan and Padme finally reached the base of the tree that held their home. Their brows furrowed, though, at the thought of how long it had taken them to get there. They had not known they had traveled so far from the house during their sparing session and the chase they were given by the five attacking Iagonians. 

They didn't have much time to think about it, though, as they looked up the length of the tall tree and realized that either they needed to repeat the same process they had used to descend the other tree or find a button down where they were to bring forth the wooden staircase, because they couldn't contact their masters through the Force. 

Obi-wan placed a hand over his eyes and ran it through his hair with a groan. 

"I don't know about you, but so far I am not too fond of not being able to use the Force." He grumbled. 

Padme agreed with him whole-heartedly, but she was much more able to adapt to living without the Force due to the fact that she had done exactly that until she was ten years old. She wasn't about to let Obi-wan know that she was coping just fine, though. Instead, she went about helping him search for a button to release the wooden planks in the trunk of the tree to form the spiral staircase. 

After a few minutes of searching, they still had no luck in finding any such button, but the familiar creaking sound went through the treetops and the stairs formed. 

Padme and Obi-wan stopped dead in their tracks. Their Masters knew they had returned. This was the part they were not looking forward to in the least. Yes, they were finally home but they did not want to face either Master Qui-gon or Master Rohhe. 

Padme looked to Obi-wan and bit her lip. There was evident anxiety her eyes. Although he too felt extreme anxiety to face his Master, whom he knew would be furious with him, Obi-wan extended his hand to grab Padme's in a reassuring gesture and exchanged a small smile with her. 

They both looked to the barely visible lofty balcony and then back to the staircase. 

"Here we go." Obi-wan gave Padme's hand a small squeeze and started to climb. 

Just as they had expected, Qui-gon and Rohhe stood waiting for them at the top of the stairs, arms crossed and neither with a very pleasant look on his face. 

The padawans quickly let go of eachother's hand and positioned themselves sheepishly in front of the two formidable Master Jedi. 

"Alright Padawans," Rohhe started with a scowl, "this had better be good." 

TBC... 

THE NEXT CHAPTER WILL BE UP EITHER IN THE NEXT FEW HOURS OR TOMORROW, DEPENDS ON HOW MY WRITING GOES AFTER I POST THIS. I HOPE ALL OF YOU LIKED THIS CHAPTER!!! 

THANK YOU TO MY WONDERFUL READERS AND REVIEWERS!!! BIG SHOUT OUTS GO TO **JEDI KELADRY**, **SASKIA**, AND **SASSY-SATINE**. ALL OF YOUR WONDERFUL COMMENTS REALLY MAKE ME WANT TO CONTINUE TO WRITE. YOU GUYS ARE TRULY WHAT KEEPS MY STORY GOING, I MEAN IT. 

AGAIN, THANK YOU EVERYBODY!!!!!   
  
  



	11. Chapter 11

Revelations-Part 11   
Disclaimer and Such in Part 1 

* * *

Padme had been right. Rohhe and Qui-gon had indeed yelled and lectured at her and Obi-wan for being completely careless in their actions, but had decided not to implement their punishments until they got off Iagone. Besides their lectures, though, the two Masters had also expressed to the padawans that they wanted to meet Illyria within the next couple of days. They were very alarmed, yet also intrigued, when Obi-wan had explained to them that the Iagonians could sense when the Force was used, so they wanted to question their supposed native friend about the issue further. The Masters then went into warning Padme and Obi-wan not to use the Force anywhere near the house, lest it would give away the position of their sanctuary. In the end, Qui-gon and Rohhe had dismissed their Padawans telling them to go off in separate directions to think about the occurrences of the past day and a half. 

For her silent reflection, Padme had chosen to relax in a large, comfortable chair situated on the wrap-around balcony. It had been several hours since she and Obi-wan had returned from their adventure, and she had spent the majority of that time replaying Qui-gon's lecture in her head and kicking herself for her poor judgment. She never would have acted so rashly, she conceded, if she had not been trying to impress Obi-wan. She didn't know why she would even want to impress her best friend in the first place, which is what frustrated her the most. Wrapping her cloak tightly around herself, she watched the rain, that had unfortunately decided to start falling right in the middle of Qui-gon's and Rohhe's lectures only adding their intimidating angry personas, fall in one big sheet off the overhang under which she sat. 

Adjusting herself in her seat, Padme didn't notice Lt. Canton appear through the drapes that separated the porch from the interior of the house. 

"Hey," He said while placing a hand on her shoulder, causing her to jump slightly in surprise, "mind if I join you?" 

Padme shook her head with a smile, "Of course not." 

She motioned for him to sit down in the chair on her right. As he sat down, Padme discreetly looked the young lieutenant up and down. All of his wounds were healing nicely, and although the burns on his leg were still prominent, they didn't seem to bother him much. She figured that his current health was most likely due to the fact that he was only a year or two older than Obi-wan and had the great regeneration skills that went along with that age. 

They made small talk for a few minutes, striking up conversations about the rain or the Jedi Order, but soon Padme felt comfortable enough with the man to her right to bring up something that she had been wanting to ask either Canton or Zared ever since she had learned that she would not be able to use the Force while she stayed on Iagone. 

"Lieutenant..." She started but Canton cut her off with a raised hand. 

"Please," He insisted, "call me Canton." 

"Alright," She hesitated a moment, "Canton...may I ask you something?" 

Canton smiled and turned his body to properly face the beautiful Jedi seated next to him. 

"Anything." 

Padme paused. She was unsure of how to start the conversation she had in mind. 

"Well," She began and cast her eyes to her lap, "I...um...well...that is..." 

Canton grinned at Padme's loss of words. Placing a hand on her knee, he encouraged her to refocus her thoughts and reassured her that she could say anything to him. 

"Well," She started again, "without the Force I haven't been able to relax very well or focus my thoughts..." 

Canton smiled. 

"So I've noticed." 

Padme let out a small laugh at the man's teasing. 

"Yes, well," She blushed and kept her eyes on her lap, "I know it's quite apparent and that has to do with what I wanted to ask you..." 

Canton squeezed Padme's knee to persuade her to continue. Padme briefly glanced at the action, but didn't think too much of it. 

"I was wondering..." She looked up and smiled shyly at him, "what are some of the things you do when you need to relax, seeing as you're not experiencing the same problem as I?" 

She avoided making eye contact with him in her embarrassment. She never thought, as a Jedi, that she would be asking such things of someone who was not Force-sensitive. 

She bit her lip, "I hope that's not a silly question." 

Canton gave Padme a warm smile. 

"That's not a silly question at all." 

"You know," He leaned back in his chair and placed his hands underneath his neck to use as a headrest," I studied the Force and the Jedi Order quite a bit back in my university days..." 

Padme raised her eyebrows. She hadn't known that the order she called family was so...researched. 

"So," He continued, "I can somewhat imagine what you're going through right now." 

Canton paused to reflect for a moment to think of a way to better explain his point. 

"I guess it would be like me trying to live without water," He concluded, "Yes, I could survive, but I would be very miserable." 

Padme's eyes warmed up at the analogy. She could definitely see the parallels between the two situations and was glad that he understood what the Force meant to her. 

The lightening flashing and thunder roaring brought their conversation to a halt for a moment. 

'Weather here is truly a mystery to me:' Padme thought while creasing her brow, 'hot one moment, cold and rainy the next. I don't even want to imagine what else could be in store for us.' 

Her mind was forced to pry itself off the rain, though, when Canton continued to speak. 

"As for relaxing, I'm not quite sure if I have specific techniques I use everytime I'm in need of a little repose, but I can give you a few pointers to get those nerves of yours tamed." 

Padme turned and gave her full attention to the man beside her. She didn't want to miss a word of what he was about to say. 

"Usually quiet activities are nice, like closing your eyes and trying not to think a single thought or practicing a series of calming moves and positions to free your body of negative energy, but sometimes screaming and making a lot of noise helps as well, like screaming at the top of your lungs or exercising as hard as you can to fatigue your body so much that you can't help but rest and relax." 

Padme thought a moment about all of the methods Canton had just shared with her. They were a lot like the methods Jedi used, well, expect maybe for the screaming, but none required the Force. She really liked the idea of exercising all of her worries and negative energy away, and decided she would have to implement that technique soon. 

"Thank you Canton," She gave the lieutenant a brilliant smile, "I will definitely have to try some of those things." 

Canton was glad he could help out the young Jedi in any way possible. 

"Anytime Jedi Naberrie," He patted her knee again with his hand, "Anytime." 

"Please," Padme grinned and repeated Canton's earlier sentiment, "call me Padme." 

Canton grinned back at her. Soon, they slipped in a comfortable silence and simply enjoyed sitting back and watching the rain fall. 

* * *

Obi-wan walked through the sunken living room and towards the portion of the balcony where he had seen Padme exit to earlier. He had finished his reflection period and had wanted to seek her out to ask her how she was fairing with her Forceless meditations. 

He reached for the gauzy, white curtain that separated the interior from the porch but stopped his actions when he heard Padme's and Canton's voices. Curious, he opened the curtain slightly to see what his best friend and the young lieutenant could be up to. He smiled as he saw the mirth in both their eyes as they talked and laughed about whatever their conversation topic was, but his smile was soon replaced with a frown when he noticed the large, male hand that rested on Padme's knee. Much to Obi-wan's confusion, a sharp pang of jealousy coursed through him. 

'I'm a Jedi,' He thought while his brow furrowed, 'these feelings are not permissible.' 

His thoughts turned to the Jedi Order, as he watched the pair continue to laugh about an unknown topic. He knew that while they weren't outright banned like other romantic relationships, inter-Jedi love affairs were generally greatly frowned upon. But why was he even thinking about that in the first place? Never before had he cared about the rules of the Order about love. It completely frustrated him that his changing feelings, even if he didn't know what they were yet, were clouding his judgment in the situation, just like they had when he and Padme had been sparring. 

With a sigh, Obi-wan suppressed his jealousy and took one final glance at the young couple in front of him. 

'I need to forget these new feeling about Padme...and soon.' He gently closed the thin curtain and walked away. 

* * *

Padme frowned as she saw the curtain that lead to the living room close. She had known Obi-wan had been standing there observing her and Canton, but she was confused as to why he had not come out to greet them. The thing that confused her more, however, was the jealously and indecision that she felt, even without the aid of the Force, radiate off him. 

Her brow furrowed as she thought about why Obi-wan would become jealous while watching the conversation she was having with Canton. Her thoughts were interrupted, though, by the lieutenant's soft, tenor voice. 

"Something wrong?" He asked with curiosity forming in his eyes. 

Shaking her thoughts from her head to think about them later, Padme replied with a smile on her face. 

"No, just daydreaming." 

Padme was relieved when Canton accepted her answer and let the subject go. Giving the porch curtain one last confused glance, she settled herself further into her chair and went back to silently watching the thick sheet of rain fall. 

TBC... 


	12. Chapter 12

Revelations-Part 12   
Disclaimer and such in Part 1

Okay, so the first part of this chapter is a little bit silly, but oh well, I just liked the idea. It's not silly at all, though, after the first part so I think that makes up for it. THANKS SOO MUCH TO MY REVIEWERS **SASSY-SATINE** (thanks for e-mailing! Like I said I really appreciate it, and I hope what we talked about about Padme and Obi-wan's relationship is moving the way you want it to in this chapter) AND **JEDI-KELADRY** (I loved your review! It really made me giggle. Thank you for being " like the girls in 'grease'" and being excited about hearing more of my story). Anyway, I HOPE YA'LL ENJOY!!! 

* * *

It had now been a total of ten days since they had crashed landed on the forest planet of Iagone and five days since Obi-wan and Padme had had their encounter with Illyria. Nothing rather special had happened in the days following that adventure, though. All the Jedi, by the time the ninth day of their stay on Iagone had rolled around, were completely healed. The two remaining members of the crew were a different story, however. Lieutenant Canton still had trouble walking properly due to the burns on his leg, and Lieutenant Zared, although his condition was improving, was still bedridden. The Jedi were doing their best to remedy that situation, though. 

Since there wasn't much to do while confined to the small area of the treehouse and since Qui-gon and Rohhe had commanded that Obi--wan and Padme spend less time together because the Masters didn't approve of the two Padawan's problem solving abilities while they were alone together, Padme spent most of her time during the past five days tending to Lt. Zared's wounds and, much to Obi-wan's frustration, deepening her friendship with Lt. Canton. Padme and Canton met everyday in the afternoon to talk and work on the young Padawan's relaxation techniques. Obi-wan hated it. He hated the fact that another man, a young, intelligent, and very handsome man no less, was getting close to Padme while he, himself, wasn't even allowed access to her. He had been trying to hide his jealous feelings for the past few days, but he wasn't sure he'd be able to do it much longer without being able to meditate his thoughts away, especially since Master Qui-gon, Master Rohhe, and Padme were leaving for the day to meet Illyria and he would be alone at the house all day with only Canton to talk to. 

With a sigh, Obi-wan walked through the front entrance of the treehouse and onto the platform that connected the spiral staircase to the balcony. Padme and the two Masters were about to head off towards the hidden tree-trunk room to meet with Illyria, so he wished to see them off safely. Besides, this was a good excuse to finally get to talk to his best friend, even if it was under the watchful gazes of Masters Jinn and Antol. 

"Have a safe trip, Master." Obi-wan bowed low to show his respect for the man he considered as his father. 

Rohhe placed a loving a hand on Obi-wan's shoulder and flashed a rare smile. 

"Thank you, Padawan. We should be back before nightfall, but do not worry if it is later." 

"Be extra careful while we are away." He continued with a much more Jedi, authoritative tone in his voice, but it softened a moment to whisper a gentle sentiment to his Padawan, "Do whatever you must to keep safe, I trust your judgment Obi-wan." 

Obi-wan was a bit taken aback by his Master's kind words, but nevertheless, very touched. To hear his Master say that he trusted him was a joy beyond belief and it took all his will power to keep a loopy grin off his face. 

Master Jinn and Padme emerged from the main entrance a second later, packs thrown over their shoulders. Obi-wan and Padme glanced at eachother with hidden smiles on their faces. They were very glad to be able communicate openly with eachother after five days of being restricted of doing so. 

Padme walked over to where her best friend stood. 

"Here to see us off Obi-wan?" She couldn't keep the smile off of her face. 

Obi-wan too smiled and, crossing his arms in front of his chest, leaned back against the balcony railing. Padme followed his actions and, putting her pack down at her feet, leaned against the railing next to him. 

"Of course," He replied with a teasing tone, "I needed to somehow give you advice on how to survive out in the jungle without me there to rescue you." 

Rohhe and Qui-gon exchanged glances and rolled their eyes, going back to checking their sacks to make sure that they had all the necessary supplies for their journey. When would their Padawans ever grow up? 

Padme laughed but didn't have time to come up with a witty reply as Qui-gon and Rohhe slung their packs over their shoulders and turned to her expectantly. 

"Well, Padawan," Master Jinn started, "you're the one who knows how to get to this place. Shall we go?" 

Padme straightened up and pushed herself off the railing. Picking up her pack, she nodded and started toward the stairs, Rohhe and Qui-gon in toe. 

"Padme wait!" Came the shout from inside the house, causing all four Jedi to turn around in time to see Lt. Canton appear through the front door. 

Padme looked at him in confusion, as did the other three Jedi around her. 

Canton grabbed her hand and brought it to his lips. 

"I couldn't let you leave without a good luck kiss now could I?" 

While Qui-gon's and Rohhe's eyes widened in amusement, Obi-wan's narrowed. How dare the man make such a display? This made him dread the afternoon he was to spend with Canton even more than he already had. He had a funny feeling that he might explode at the young flight crewman if he said even one word to him. Where was the Force when he needed it? 

Padme blushed in embarrassment. She wasn't an idiot. She knew Canton was starting to take a romantic liking to her, but for him to display that in front of her Master, no less, was a bit of a surprise. 

"Well, thank you, Lieutenant." Obi-wan smirked in triumph at Padme's lack of using Canton's first name. A part of him knew that she did that only because they were in front of Qui-gon and Rohhe, but at the moment he didn't really care. 

Qui-gon broke the moment, despite his entertainment in it. 

"Alright, if we could please go now..." 

Canton let go of Padme's hand and let the three Jedi be on their way. 

When they were well out of earshot of anyone at the treehouse, Rohhe spoke to Padme with laughter in his voice. 

"Well, Padawan Naberrie, it seems you have an admirer." Padme snorted at the comment. She would never live this down, would she? 

* * *

Luckily, with the three Jedi's healed bodies and Padme's impressive memory, they reached the secret sitting room within only three quarters of an hour. When Padme stopped at the base of the tree she and Obi-wan had descended less than a week earlier, Qui-gon and Rohhe looked to her for direction. She silently pointed to the high branches, communicating to them that the room they sought was inside the trunk of the tree next to which they were standing. The two Masters nodded and set down their packs. Taking out a couple of lengths of rope, they handed them to Padme to attach to her belt. She quickly shed her cloak and stuffed it into her pack and did what they asked. Handing her pack to Qui-gon, she moved to the base of the tree and looked for a good spot to start climbing. It was rather odd to her that the grooves she had made five days ago to aid Obi-wan were only barely visible and would've had to have been recarved to be of any help to them in their current situation. 

'What incredible healing powers.' Padme thought as she placed her first hand on the trunk and started her climb to the high branches. Since this time she didn't have to carry a knife with her and dig small grooves into the tree along the way, it only took her ten minutes to climb to her desired destination. 

When she reached the small, hidden room, Padme, first, found the invisible door and peered in to see if anyone was already occupying the space, and then, when she was sure that no one was, she took the lengths of rope off her belt and tied each one to the branch on which she stood and lowered the remaining length of each to the two Jedi Masters waiting on the ground below her. 

Each Master grabbed one of the ropes and easily pulled themselves up to where Padme stood. After Padme helped them onto the thick branch, they knelt down and gathered up the ropes and put them back into their sacks. Qui-gon handed his Padawan's pack back to her and waited for her to show them where to go from there. Padme silently motioned for them to walk through the illusion of the tree trunk and into the small sitting room. The two Masters looked around in amazement. Qui-gon's eyes narrowed at a realization, though. If this room existed without their detection, then there could be more rooms exactly like it...anywhere. 

Padme walked over to the small rope button that Illyria had pointed to in her last stay in the room and pressed it, hoping that Illyria's words about only her knowing that they were at the secret hideaway were true. A few moments after Padme had pressed the button, Illyria's thickly accented voice sounded from a hidden com-speaker. 

"I will be there shortly." 

Padme turned to Rohhe and Qui-gon. 

"I guess we should just wait." She shrugged and headed over to a couch to sit down. 

"We need to be careful, Padawan," Qui-gon took his saber off his belt and gripped it at his side, "This could be a trap." He then began to quietly pace around the small space. 

Rohhe, taking his saber from his belt as well, did the same. Padme sighed and knew she needed to follow suit. She had just grabbed her light saber when Illyria's form materialized through the door. 

Qui-gon and Rohhe ignited their sabers and jumped into ready stance at the arrival of the small Iagonian, but Padme simply continued to hold hers to her side and walked over to Illyria in greeting. 

"It's good to see you again, Padme." Illyria gave the young Padawan and warm hug. 

"And the same to you." Padme replied with a smile as their embrace ended. 

"This is Master Qui-gon and Master Rohhe." She continued and pointed to them in turn. The Masters switched off their sabers, but still kept them ready at their sides. 

Illyria walked up to each man and extended a furred hand. With some reluctance, they both accepted her friendly gesture and, in turn, shook her hand. 

"Pleased to meet you both." She said while turning to sit down in the large, over-stuffed chair, "Now, is there a particular reason why you called me out here, or is this just a visit for some amusing chit-chat?" 

Qui-gon and Rohhe followed Padme's actions and sat down on the couch across from the chair in which Illyria sat. 

"Actually," Padme spoke, "Masters Qui-gon and Rohhe wished to meet you." 

Illyria's gaze flicked to the two formidable looking Jedi. 

"Yes, Illyria is it?" The petite woman nodded at Qui-gon's question, "We were wondering if you could tell a us a little bit more about your planet and your people." 

Illyria laughed. 

"Well, sir, I'll answer what I can, but I come from a rather small village, by this planet's standards at least, and am therefore by no means an expert." 

Qui-gon and Rohhe weren't too thrown by Illyria's remark. They only wanted to know some basic questions, so they were pretty sure that she could answer them. 

They sat on that small couch for almost six hours while they discussed different aspects of the Iagonian race. Plus, even though Qui-gon was a bit hesitant to share much information about their Force-sensitive nature, Illyria had wanted to know more about the Jedi's people and abilities. 

In the six hours that the three Jedi sat and talked with Illyria, they realized everything she told them they had pretty much already known or guessed. A few exceptions included the hierarchy of the planetary cities (the tan Iagonians with large manes who lived in the plains were the leaders of the planet, the orange or white Iagonians with black stripes who lived in the mountains were next in line, the tree-dwelling, black and spotted Iagonians were after them, the skinny, orange Iagonians with black spots who also lived in the plains were last of the larger races, and anyone group smaller than those four was left to fend for themselves when it came to societal positioning) and how the Iagonians executed their hunting parties in groups of five. 

When they finally got up to head back to the treehouse, Padme got to ask a question that had been on her mind for a few days, since she was in charge of rations for the group. 

"Illyria," She started when they stood in front of the invisible door, "could you perhaps tell us where a good food source is? Our group is running low on supplies." Padme glanced in Qui-gon and Rohhe's direction, hoping that they wouldn't be angry with her for informing Illyria that they needed to get more food or else they would starve soon. She just really felt like she could trust the woman in front of her. She couldn't put her finger on why, she just did. 

Illyria smiled. 

"Of course, but they are heavily worked by our farmers. So, there would be little chance of you being successful in obtaining any food." Illyria paused a moment in thought, seeming to be trying to come up with a solution for her friends's dilemma. 

"Well," She started slowly, knowing that the two men to her right didn't trust her in the slightest, "I could bring you food every week, if you wish. I don't have to bring it to wherever you might be hiding, but I could leave it here." She gestured to the counter on the far wall. 

Padme looked to Qui-gon and Rohhe for an answer. They pondered for a moment to consider all risks involved in meeting Illyria once a week, but Rohhe eventually spoke for the group and agreed to the exchange. 

"We must be going now, though." Rohhe said while glancing at the door. 

Illyria nodded and exited first to make sure that no other Iagonian was present outside. When she motioned to them that it was all clear, the three Jedi tightened their grip on their sabers, lest Illyria had set them up, and walked through the door.   
  
To their relief, there really was no one to be found except Illyria. Tying the ropes to the tree branch again, they made their descent. After waiting a moment to make sure that Illyria had ventured back to her village and not decided to follow them, they made their way back to their treetop home. 

* * *

Obi-wan leaned forward and rested himself against the balcony railing. 

'The sunsets are really beautiful here,' He thought as he looked around branches that glittered with orange and red hues. His mind was on other things, though. 

He had just finished redressing Lt. Zared's wounds, but other than that, he had had a rather uneventful day, mostly because he avoided talking with either of the flight crewman the whole time, which was surprisingly difficult due to Canton's overly-friendly manner. Obi-wan really wanted some sort of reason to dislike the handsome lieutenant, but he was just too...nice. How annoying. 

With a troubled sigh, he gently pushed himself away from railing and turned to walk through the gauzy, white curtains that led to the small dining area. 

"Jedi Kenobi!" Came the call of Canton's voice, as the young Padawan entered the interior of the house. The Lieutenant was mulling about in the kitchen doing Force knows what. 

'Great,' Obi-wan thought as Canton appeared at the door that connected the kitchen and the dining room, 'there goes the idea of stopping conflict by avoidance.' 

"Would you care to have some tea with me?" He asked in a friendly manner that completely grated on Obi-wan's nerves. He knew that he was being totally irrational in his dislike of Canton, but he just couldn't help how much his annoyance boiled at the mere sight of the man. 

"Sure." Obi-wan answered with as much politeness as he could muster. 

'This ought to be interesting.' He thought with a mental scowl as he took a seat and Canton retreated into the kitchen to retrieve the tea and some cups. 

"I hope you like it." The Lieutenant smiled too much for Obi-wan's liking, "It's my own blend of herbs and spices." 

Obi-wan tentatively took a sip after Canton set the filled cup down in front of him. He hated to admit but the tea was excellent. That only added to Obi-wan's annoyance with the character in front of him. 

"So Jedi Kenobi," Canton paused a moment, seeming to hope that Obi-wan would extend the sentiment that he should call him by his first name. Obi-wan made no such move. 

"Um," He continued after a moment of disappointment, "How long have you and Padme known eachother?" 

Obi-wan mentally groaned. He _had_ to bring her up: the one subject where he didn't think he could maintain his cool when discussing it with the man seated across form him. And why did he have to use her first name? It only reminded him that there was a friendship between Canton and Padme. 

"Well," He stared at Canton coolly and placed his cup down on the table, "we've been best friend's for about six years." He wanted to make sure that the lieutenant understood that Padme was his best friend. 

"Wow," Canton didn't seem deferred from his disposition in the slightest, "that's quite a while." 

"Yes it is" Obi-wan mentally winced at how harsh his voice sounded, even to his own ears. 

Canton glanced at Obi-wan curiously out of the corner of his eye, but continued to gaze out the window at the beautiful sunset that Obi-wan had been watching earlier and sipped his tea. 

"She's quite a woman." Canton commented nonchalantly. 

Obi-wan's eyes narrowed for the second time that day. He had wished that their topic would change, but now it seemed that it was only going to grow in complexity. 

"I hope you know, Lieutenant..." Canton cut off Obi-wan's sentence. 

"Please," He said with a sickeningly charming smile, "call me Canton." 

"I hope you know, Lieutenant," Obi-wan emphasized his choice in what to call the man in front of him with a cold voice that tried to sound warm, "Jedi aren't allowed to fall in love." 

That had done it. Obi-wan's cool manner towards the innocent flight crewman he was drinking tea with had finally gone too far. 

"Well, Jedi Kenobi" Canton slammed his cup down on the table and spoke through clenched teeth, "that obviously hasn't stopped you!" 

He quickly rose from his chair and stalked out of the room, leaving a stunned Obi-wan behind. 

TBC.... 

What do you guys think?! I hope ya'll liked it! I'll try to get the next chapters up soon, but it might be a few days considering I haven't quite figured out their content yet, lol. 


	13. Chapter 13

Revelations-Part 13   
Disclaimer and such in Part 1

  


Just a short little chapter I wrote at four in the morning. So, it may be all types of craziness, but I kinda like it. 

I must say a huge THANK YOU to my wonderful new beta reader [you know who you are =-) ] for all the great help she has given me in improving my sometimes rather poor grammar and for giving me immediate feedback on my story, even when I don't necessarily want to hear the bad things, lol. Also, big "thank you"'s to my wonderful, constant reviewers!!! **Sassy-Satine **(thank you for the awesome compliments you've given me through your e-mails. I'm glad you didn't think the first part of chapter 12 was silly, because I was a bit wary of that. And another thank you for thinking that the part where Canton gets angry at Obi-wan is great writing...hehe...I try) and **Jedi Keladry **( I'm glad that you got a good laugh out of the last portion of chapter 12. I was giggling all through writing it, so I'm happy the humor played through. Yes, Gary Stu alert, but more of a comedic, satirical look on Gary Stus. I agree that Canton is very annoying, which is why I think I have such a fun time writing him and why I think writing Obi-wan's feeling towards him comes quite easily for me, lol. I wrote Canton to be one of those guys that if they smile their teeth are soo freakin' white that they do that *ping* thing, if you have any idea what I'm rambling about. Anyway, thanks again so much for all of your wonderful comments. I really appreciate them all.) 

Now, onto chapter 13!!! Hope ya'll enjoy!!!   


  


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Obi-wan sat in the two-bed chamber that he shared with his Master and the two crewmen. It had been seventeen days since they had arrived on Iagone and, ever since their little incident over tea, Obi-wan and Canton had religiously avoided each other. After that uncivil ordeal, neither of them wanted to face the embarrassment of looking at each other. Out of the two of them, though, the conversation they shared had affected Obi-wan much greater. Canton had all but outright confessed Obi-wan's feelings about Padme for him. The lieutenant saw it as love, but Obi-wan wasn't sure. Love was something so foreign to him that he didn't even know what to look for in identifying it. As much grumbling as he had done before about wishing he had the Force to help him, his longing to tap into its knowledge and comfort only increased with Canton's outburst. Obi-wan couldn't wait to get off the planet, but he did the best he could to adapt to a Force-less lifestyle. And even though he was now allowed to visit and talk with Padme, he didn't find it much of a comfort since most of his confusion stemmed from her. Yes, he'd stroll around the house with her or sit with her on the porch occasionally, but mostly he plunged himself into various activities and chores around the house to keep his mind off her. Of course, Canton didn't help. He was always to be found by her side. Mr. Perfect. Force, he was so irritating. Obi-wan wanted Padme desperately away from the too-suave-to-be-real lieutenant, but he couldn't even think of one good reason to convince her to do so. He let his thoughts come back to the present, though, and reminded himself that he was a Jedi, that they were on a mission, and he had work to do.   

'So much for trying to meditate without the Force,' he thought with a sigh. Obi-wan continued to stare out the open door that led to the balcony. It was the morning of the day that he, Padme, and Rohhe were to go to the hidden sitting room and retrieve the food Illyria had left for them. He was glad beyond belief that he was finally going to be able to get out of the house and just be with Padme, because he was sure that without the calming affects of the Force that he would go completely crazy any day.   

Obi-wan was so deep in his thoughts that he didn't hear or sense Padme approach the bedroom door.   

Padme had just taken a shower and had been exiting the room she shared with Qui-gon when she saw her best friend, sitting on his bed and sadly gazing out to the balcony. She had been wanting to speak with him privately for, well, ever since they had gotten off restriction, but he was avoiding her. She knew it had something to do with Canton, because she had noticed that Obi-wan's mood had changed drastically when she, Qui-gon, and Rohhe had returned from their meeting with Illyria. She had even asked Canton about it, but he had said that nothing out the ordinary had happened while she was away.   

Canton. Now he was a character to her. He made it blatantly obvious in their previous conversations that he wanted something more than friendship between them, and had even tried to kiss her on more than one occasion, but Padme would have none of it. Sure, the guy was sweet, sometimes a little too sweet for her liking, but she was a Jedi and the area of love and attachment was not territory she could walk.   

Padme looked longingly at Obi-wan, who still had yet to notice her standing in the doorway.   

She wanted her best friend back.   

Wiping all traces of sadness and confusion off of her face, she cleared her throat and made her presence known as she walked into the room.   

Obi-wan's face lit up at the sight of the figure that sat down next to him on his bed. It was nice to see her without that puppy dog of a lieutenant following in her shadow.   

"A credit for your thoughts." She started with a smile.   

"You have the credit?" He said while looking around her body, trying to find the aforementioned form of currency. Padme laughed and hit Obi-wan's arm to halt its search of her utility belt.   

"It's not very gentlemanly of you to tousle a lady like that." She tried to hide the grin on her face as she straightened out her robes.   

"Whoever said you were a lady?" Padme's jaw dropped in mock offense.   

"But whoever said I was a gentleman either?" Obi-wan continued before the slew of insults could come off of Padme's tongue.   

Padme gave him a death glare. "Sometimes you're insufferable, Obi-wan Kenobi, you know that?" She got up from the bed and, while running her fingers through her damp hair, walked over to the small vanity mirror that was situated on top of the room's main bureau.   

"Of course I know. That's why I do it."   

Obi-wan came up from behind her and laid a gentle hand on her wrist.   

"Let me do that." He whispered softly and pulled her back to the bed with him. Sitting her down on the floor in front of him, he placed one leg on either side of her body and settled himself on the mattress above her. Reaching to his right and into a drawer of the small desk next to his bed, Obi-wan pulled out a large, bone comb.   

Padme closed her eyes when she felt Obi-wan's fingers working out all the knots in her long, tangled hair. She loved it when other people played with her hair, even though the only other two to have done it, besides herself, were Qui-gon and Obi-wan. Nonetheless, it felt wonderful, and since she wasn't allowed many physically pleasureful things, belonging to the Jedi Order and all, she always enjoyed the opportunity when it came along. Her cheeks began to blush. She wanted to giggle at the train of thought her mind was taking, but decided against it because she knew she'd have to explain it to Obi-wan. How embarrassing would that be?   

Obi-wan could feel the contentment emanating off the Padawan at his feet and smiled. He was glad to give her at least a small joy amidst their perilous situation. He was filled with content, as well, in knowing that Padme would never allow anyone besides her Master or him to perform such an intimate gesture. Slowly, he worked out all the big knots in her hair with his fingers and then moved on to get out the smaller knots with the comb he held in his right hand.   

'Force, she has such an intoxicating scent.' Closing his eyes, he inhaled the soft aroma that came from her newly-cleaned body. He had never noticed it before, or maybe it was the planet's shampoo that she was using, but he could've sworn that he smelled a hint of some sort of exotic fruit in her hair. Either way, she smelt very good and he was beginning to really enjoy being in her presence again.   

Sweeping the comb one last time through Padme's hair before he sectioned it off for her padawan braids, Obi-wan noticed her convulse slightly and draw in a sharp breath. He quickly stopped his movements.   

"Did I hurt you?" he asked worried.   

"No," Padme breathed out with merriment in her voice, "you just gave me the chills." She moved her hair to the side to show him her bare neck covered with goose bumps.   

Obi-wan smiled and licked the tip of his finger. Running it lightly over the back of her neck and shoulder, he leaned forward and gently blew on the trail he had just made, grinning as he saw the bumps intensify.   

Padme laughed but squirmed her neck and shoulder out of his grasp.   

"No more of that Jedi Kenobi." Even if he couldn't see her face, Obi-wan could hear the smile in her voice.   

"Maybe for now..." He trailed off, realizing how suggestive his voice sounded.   

Padme was shocked, to say the least. Had Obi-wan just used that sexy, flirtatious voice on her? As awkward as she always thought the notion of Obi-wan coming onto her might be, it wasn't. She actually kind of liked the sound of it coming off his lips. Pushing it out of her mind, though, she let it slide and leaned back to allow him to start braiding her hair.   

The female padawan braid style Padme had chosen wasn't too complicated, but it was more complicated than most. First, Obi-wan created a rectangular section on the top of her head and then vertically parted the remaining hair into two sections. With the two bottom sections he did normal braids and tied them off at the ends with some elastic bands. On the top section, however, he took small pieces one at a time and wove them together to create a braid that fit snugly against Padme's scalp. It didn't take long to do, but Obi-wan meandered a bit because he didn't want the lovely situation they had found themselves in to end.   

It did have to come to an end, though, and when he was finished, Obi-wan gently laid his hands on Padme's shoulders. She looked up at him with a smile.   

"Thank you Obi-wan." She stood and faced him but then realized that she was standing directly in between his knees. Blushing, she made her way towards the exit.   

"Padme..." Obi-wan's voice stopped her.   

She turned around to find him not on his bed, like she had expected, but mere inches away from her face.   

Obi-wan stared at her for a few moments, not quite sure of what his voice had wanted his next words to be. Eventually deciding to say nothing, he slowly raised a hand and let his thumb lightly caress her left cheek.   

Padme didn't know what to say or what to do. The intensity of Obi-wan's gaze was like nothing she had ever before seen from him. She liked it, yet, she was also afraid of it.   

_Afraid. _  

_Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering._ The mantra quickly played in her head.   

"I...I," She stammered as she backed out of his touch, "I better go finish getting ready for our trip." She made a quick exit from the room before Obi-wan even had time to speak.   

Hearing the click of Padme's bedroom door shutting, Obi-wan turned and made his way back to his bed. With a sigh, he lowered himself onto the soft mattress and went back to his attempts of Force-less meditation.   

TBC...  


	14. Chapter 14

"Revelations"-Part 14   
Disclaimer and such in Part 1

  
  
Hey ya'll!! Sorry it took me so long ot get this up, I've been really busy with finals lately. BUT, now finals are over and I can finally write on a regular basis. Hope ya'll enjoy this chapter. Much thanks to Jedi Keladry for her beta-reading. 

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By midday Qui-gon, Obi-wan, and Padme were ready to head out to the secret, treetop hideaway that held the food Illyria had supposedly left for them. Keeping unnaturally silent, Padme walked behind her two closest friends as they made their way down the spiral staircase, all the while replaying in her head the strange feelings that had passed between her and Obi-wan earlier that morning. She didn't know why she had run away from her best friend's gentle touch, because in all truth she had enjoyed it very much. She was troubled, though, by the intensity his gaze had held. Never before had she seen him look at anything in the manner he had looked at her. In fact, she had never before seen anyone look at another person the way he had looked at her. Well, perhaps she had seen the same intensity in the gazes her parents would direct at each other, but no one had ever given _her_ a look like that; so, she didn't know what to make of it. Indeed, she had been frightened, but not of the look itself; rather, she had been frightened of what it implied. Obi-wan had romantic feelings for her? No, surely that wasn't the case. Padme shook her head. As appealing as the thought of becoming intimately involved with Obi-wan might seem, she knew it was impossible. They were both Jedi. Which meant no love, no romance, no attachment, period. 

She closed her eyes and tried to clear her head. Now was not the time to be thinking of such things: they had a mission to accomplish. Opening her eyes, she continued her way down to the ground, pushing all thoughts of her personal affairs out of her head. 

They again reached the little sitting room quite easily and without incident. And for the third time since their landing on Iagone, Padme climbed the ridiculously tall tree and began to tie the two ropes to a study branch. When she had secured the knots of the ropes, she lowered the remaining lengths and walked towards the hidden doorway. Just before entering the door, however, she spotted three large, male Iagonians. They were fifty meters away, searching the distant tree branches. Flattening herself against the trunk of the tree, Padme studied their movements, hoping not to attract their attention. 

As she studied them, though, her brow furrowed. Something wasn't quite right. She couldn't put her finger on what was bothering her about the three men, but a feeling in her gut was telling her that there was definitely something wrong. Glancing down to see how far Qui-gon and Obi-wan had progressed up the ropes, she racked her brain trying to figure out the reason for her unease. 

"Force..." She breathed out in fear, as realization came over her, 'They hunt in groups of five!' 

She turned to climb down and inform Qui-gon and Obi-wan that they needed to leave as soon as possible, but halfway through her turn, a pair of strong, furred legs swung from the branch above her and connected with her chest, sending her flying into the trunk of the tree. 

Both Qui-gon and Obi-wan looked up at the loud, thumping sound Padme's crash made. Their eyes widened at the sight of two Iagonian males advancing on Padme's hunched form. Without thought, they tripled the pace of their climb. 

Padme coughed as she tried to pick herself up off of the wide branch. The force that the two men in front of her could muster was surprising, to say the least. She reached for her saber, but her attackers were quicker. They roughly pulled her up by digging their sharp claws into her arms. Padme opened her mouth to scream, but the pain was so overwhelming, she couldn't utter a sound. Gathering as much strength as she could, she kicked out in both directions, hitting the men in their knees. They let go of her, but she barely had any time to move from between them before they were on her again. She fought as hard as she could, hoping desperately that Obi-wan and Qui-gon would reach the top of the ropes any minute, but she was no match for their strength without the Force. The three Iagonians in the distance hadn't yet noticed the fight that was raging between her and the other two men of their party, so Padme wasn't going to jeopardize that by calling the Force to her aid. Facing five of the men at one time, instead of two, was not something she wanted to do anytime soon. Especially when she was three hundred meters up a tree.  

She was faring all right against the two men, but as she tried to block a slash from one of them to her face, the other kicked her in the chin from the other side. 

Padme fell. 

Qui-gon watched as the two Iagonians sent his padawan over the edge of the branch to fall to her death. Without skipping a beat, he reached out with one hand and grabbed her by the arm. The impact the stopping of her speedy fall generated caused both of them to slide down the rope a bit, but Qui-gon's left hand held on strong. When their descent ceased, Padme looked to her master and nodded. He gave her a quick smile and let go of her hand, allowing her to attach onto the rope below him. Continuing his climb, Qui-gon looked up just in time to see the two Iagonians calling to someone in the distance. It was then that he saw the remaining three of the hunting party. 

"There is no possible way we are going to be able to do this without the Force." He stated matter-of-factly and moved his gaze to Obi-wan, who was still climbing determinedly towards their now five attackers. 

"Padme," Qui-gon murmured as he halted his ascent, "follow my lead." He grabbed his saber from his belt and, for the first time in what seemed like forever, used to Force to propel himself to the branch to face the Iagonians. Padme, although bleeding and somewhat beaten, took hold of her saber as well and copied her master's actions. 

Obi-wan watched as his two fellow Jedi tapped into the Force and landed in front of their attackers with their sabers lit and ready for battle. Smiling, he unhooked his saber and relished in the feeling of the Force flowing through him as he flew through the air to join in the fight. 

The Iagonians seemed a bit surprised at the Jedi's capabilities, but nonetheless, reached behind themselves to produce weapons of their own. The three Jedi watched nervously as the five men each pulled out a small, metal ball. They didn't have to wait long to find out what the balls did, however, as one by one the Iagonians tossed a ball into the air and waited until each spun itself into a long, cylindrical item, almost two meters in length. The men reached into the air to retrieve their new staffs. Smiling maliciously, two of the men rushed Qui-gon, figuring that he was the leader and the strongest among the three, while the remaining Iagonians turned their attentions to Padme and Obi-wan, thinking that they would be easy pickings. 

Qui-gon wasn't having much trouble defending himself against his attackers, but, much to his astonishment, his lightsaber had absolutely no affect on the metallic weapons the cat-like creatures were using. They might as well have been both fighting with primitive swords, for all that it mattered. 

Padme and Obi-wan were also surprised that their lightsabers didn't cut straight through the metal staffs, but, like Qui-gon, didn't let that fact waver their concentration in the slightest. They stayed back to back to fight off all three attackers at once, figuring that neither one of them would be a match for two of the creatures on their own. The Iagonians seemed to sense that notion and promptly executed a plan to separate the two padawans. Two of them moved in directly facing either Padme or Obi-wan and attacked, engaging their lightsabers enough to allow the third man to move in from the side to try and make the two Jedi move away from each other. Unfortunately, their plan worked. Obi-wan and Padme both spun to their lefts, leaving them on opposite sides of the branch with three ferocious warriors between them. 

Two went after Padme, hoping to get her out of the way so all three of them could take on Obi-wan, but Padme wasn't about to give up easily. She jumped from branch to branch, blocking all of their attempts to hit her with their weapons. Eventually, though, she found herself once again cornered with her back to the tree trunk. There was no escape to the right or the left, so Padme took a deep breath and let herself fall off the branch. Growling, the two men dug their claws into the trunk of the tree and began to follow her down. 

Qui-gon, meanwhile, was faring well with the Iagonians against which he was fighting. He had successfully disarmed one of them, but that had only fueled the other to come at him with even more force. At the moment, he was being pushed towards the branch over the side of which Padme had thrown herself. He was blocking every blow the creature threw at him, but the thing had greater strength and was still pushing him backwards. Qui-gon felt a savage kick to the chest, and he steeled himself for impact against the tree trunk. But instead of the expected collision, he reeled into the hidden sitting room. 

Illyria let out a scream as the Jedi master came crashing through the invisible door and tumbled over the large chair. This was definitely not the entrance she had been expecting from her guests. Regaining her wits, she quickly rushed over to Qui-gon to help him up. He accepted her help, but in the next moment pushed her aside as the Iagonian male came through the door, weapon flailing. Their fight continued for a few moments inside the room, but Qui-gon didn't want to cause Illyria harm so he made his way for the invisible door, continuing to fend off his attacker. 

Once back outside, Qui-gon was joined by Obi-wan, who had, by then, disarmed and rendered his assailant unconscious. They briefly looked at each other, then glanced down to find Padme still fighting two men on a branch far below them. Instantly, they jumped backward and let themselves sail through the air until they came upon the branch on which Padme fought. Slowing themselves down with the Force, they landed on either side of their fellow Jedi. 

Padme's attackers were surprised and worried at the appearance of Qui-gon and Obi-wan, but those feelings soon subsided as two of their fellow hunters joined them on either side as well. The Jedi were still outnumbered. 

'This is a stalemate.' Qui-gon projected to the two padawans' minds with as much calm as he could, but frustration was evident in his tone. 

An idea formed in Padme's mind. 'Illyria said they're afraid of the ground,' she sent. 

Qui-gon and Obi-wan both gave her sidelong glances and then, looking at each other, nodded. Together all three Jedi stepped off the side of the branch and freely fell towards the ground two hundred meters below. 

The Iagonians ears perked up in interest at the move their targets made, but almost immediately afterwards jumped to the trunk of the tree and clawed their way to the bottom to meet them. When they were a few meters off the ground, they leaped from the tree and landed with a loud thud on the soil in front of the three waiting Jedi. 

"I hope Illyria was telling us the truth." Obi-wan murmured and increased his grip on his saber, waiting for the Iagonians to approach and attack. 

Silently, the other padawan was thinking the same thing. If Illyria had misspoken, Padme knew that they might lose this battle. She understood now that she had underestimated the power of the Iagonians. They were more than a match for a Jedi. The reality of how dangerous their situation really was finally sunk into Padme's mind. With a breath, she quickly pushed out any ounce of fear that dared to creep into her being. 

Figuring they had already won, the four Iagonian men grinned. Unlike they had done when they first engaged the Jedi, the men slowly walked forward in a row, like a squad of soldiers would march, gripping their metallic staffs tighter with each step. 

They didn't get far, though, because within a matter of moments, they stopped their movements and bolted their ears completely upright. Their eyes widening in fear, they quickly looked behind their shoulders and dropped their weapons. In seconds the men reverted their weapons back into the metallic balls and, giving the Jedi a last murderous look, sprinted as fast as they could away from the scene. 

Qui-gon, Obi-wan, and Padme gave each other nervous glances, all hoping that in their attempt to get rid of one enemy they hadn't given themselves a newer, more dangerous one. Their thoughts were interrupted, though, by the sound of something scraping against tree bark. Illyria was clawing her way down the trunk of the tree to meet with them. About a meter from the ground, though, she stopped dead in her tracks. When she heard a low growl rumble from nearby bushes, her face filled with fear. She quickly leapt from the tree to where the Jedi were standing. 

"They're here." Panic was obvious in her voice. 

The three Jedi didn't have much time to think about what her words meant, as the low growling became thunderous in their ears. They looked about trying to figure out where the sound was coming from, but they could see nothing out of the ordinary. 

"Who..." Padme's sentence was cut off when a slight movement at the base of a nearby tree caught her eye. Transfixed, she watched as what she had thought to be a shadow slowly slithered its way off the bark and molded and remolded itself into undeterminable shapes, all the while moving towards the small group. 

Illyria noticed the movement a brief moment later. With a gasp, she grabbed Qui-gon's hand. 

"Run!" she screamed and started to pull Qui-gon with her as she fled for her life. Padme and Obi-wan followed close behind them, also frightened by the mysterious, shapeless creature that they could feel following them. 

After they had run less than a kilometer, the creature's presence faded from their minds and sunk back into nothingness. Pausing to rest, the Jedi halted their movements, stopping Illyria as well. 

"What....what was that?" Padme questioned between bated breaths. 

Illyria didn't answer, but rather, simply looked around nervously. She obviously was too frightened to speak. 

Qui-gon looked to Padme and Obi-wan. Whatever that thing was, they weren't going to get answers about it from Illyria while they sat out in the middle of the woods, hoping it didn't follow them. 

"I...I..."Illyria stammered out, trying desperately to think clearly through her fear, "I need to to get back to my village." 

She walked towards the closest tree and prepared to start climbing, but Padme placed a warm hand on her arm, stopping her completely. 

"Illyria," Her eyes were pleading, "what about...what about the food?" They had nothing left at the tree house besides some tea and a few emergency ration bars. It would not last them thirteen more days. 

Illyria's eyes seemed to focus then, and her tone grew more controlled. 

"Oh, yes," She brought the pack she had slung over her shoulder to the ground in front of her, "it's in here." She then turned back to the tree and let loose one set of claws into the bark. 

"But..." Padme continued after quickly looking through the contents of the bag, "There's only enough here for a few days, how will we find you in the future? They saw me head towards the hideaway." 

Illyria sighed after a moment, and faced the group again. 

"I do not know what to suggest to you, Padme." She looked to the faces of the other two Jedi, "Perhaps, you could show me where you are currently hiding, so I may bring you your food there in the future." 

Qui-gon's eyes widened at Illyria's suggestion. Could they really trust her that much? She had saved them from the shapeless thing that had chased them on the ground, but possibly she had just been trying to save herself. There was so much to think about when answering her request, and he didn't know where to go with it. He looked to Obi-wan, but only found the young man's eyes brimming with his same concerns. He then looked to Padme, knowing that she was gifted with intuition. What he saw in her eyes was not what he wanted to see, though; it was trust. Trust in him and trust in Illyria. He crossed his arms in front of his chest and looked to the high branches, wishing he could ask the Force for help. Finally, he sighed and brought his gaze back to Illyria. 

"I do not like this." he said gravely and turned to walk in the direction the tree house, motioning for all of them to follow.   


TBC...

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**OKAY TIME FOR BIG "THANK YOU'S"**

**JEDI KELADRY: **THANKS SO MUCH FOR ALL THE KIND WORDS YOU'VE SAID TO ME ABOUT MY STORY. IT'S REALLY APPRECIATED! YEAH, A GUESS A GAME-SHOW HOST SMILE IS EXACTLY WHAT CANTON WOULD HAVE, LOL. THANKS SOO MUCH AGAIN FOR BETA-READING FOR ME! 

**SMENZER: **HEY GIRL! A BIG THANK YOU TO YOU FOR, WOW, REVEIWING EVERY SINGLE CHAPTER! I ALWAYS LOVE IT WHEN PEOPLE DO THAT, HEHE. DOES THIS PERK UP YOUR CURIOSITY SENSORS IN REGARDS TO THE "VELACERAPTORS" (LOL)? DON'T WORRY YOU'LL KNOW A LOT MORE IN THE NEXT CHAPTER. 

**SASKIA: **THANK YOU FOR YOUR REVIEW! I HAVEN'T HEARD FROM YA IN A WHILE! LOL, IF YOU HATE CANTON NOW, WELL, HEHE, YOU'LL JUST HAVE TO READ FURTHER. 

**SASSY-SATINE:** THANKS FOR E-MAILING ME WITH SUCH A WONDERFUL REVIEW! HEHE, YOU WEREN'T THE ONLY ONE WHO WANTED OBI-WAN TO KISS PADME. I GOTTA HAVE THE ANGST IN THERE, THOUGH, OR ELSE WHERE WOULD THE FUN BE?   
  
  
  



	15. Chapter 15

"Revelations"-Part 15   
Disclaimer and such in Part 1

Hey Ya'll... sorry it's been like four months since I updated this fic. I'd been working all summer and just didn't have time to write, but now that I'm back in school I should be able to update a little more often. 

A BIG thank you to Jedi Keladry for still wanting to beta for me after the long absence. 

Now, onto the story. I hope ya'll like it! 

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The journey back to the treetop house took the four companions a bit longer than usual due to the fact that they had to retrace their steps back to where the fight took place and concentrate on calming Illyria's nerves every few moments. The Jedi and their charge reached their temporary home in just over an hour. 

Within moments of their arrival, the spiral staircase emerged. 

Illyria's brow furrowed in confusion when the staircase started to form around the large tree. Cocking her head to the side, she took a glance upwards and finally noticed the high tree house."Hmm," she murmured to herself in wonder as they made their way up the stairs, "I've never been here before." 

As soon as they reached the top and entered through the main doorway, Illyria paused to take in the scenery. Qui-gon, however, had different plans. With as much force as any of the other Jedi had ever seen from him, he grabbed her by the arm and sat her roughly down on one of the couches in the sunken living room. 

"You, my dear," he started with a stern voice as he stood towering above her, "are first going to explain how that hunting party knew where to find us, and then secondly explain what that creature was that we ran from." 

Illyria remained silent for a few moments, obviously a bit frightened of the tall Jedi in front of her. 

Padme, having remained standing in the front door by Obi-wan, tried to to ease the woman's discomfort by moving into the living room and sitting down on a couch opposite her. Obi-wan followed suit, but instead of sitting down, decided to take stance behind the couch with his arms crossed in front of his chest. He wasn't sure he was so willing to trust the creature they had brought into their home. 

Qui-gon was about to start his questioning again when Master Antol and Canton emerged from the kitchen. As soon as they caught sight of the small, furred woman on their couch, both of their eyes widened. 

Rohhe turned his gaze to Qui-gon in disbelief. He wanted to ask Qui-gon how he could possibly let one of the natives know the location of their hideout, but knew there would be plenty of opportunity to discuss it at a later time. Canton, on the other hand, could not help but stare at the very human looking feline. He never imagined that the inhabitants of Iagone would look quite like what was seated not three meters from him. He probably would not have even moved from the doorway of the kitchen if Rohhe had not nudged him in the back and pushed him towards the living room. 

With the two latest additions to the room settled, Qui-gon turned his eyes back to Illyria. 

"Look," Illyria held up a furred hand to stop him from speaking, "I know you must be thinking I had something to do with the attack on you three, but I must profess my innocence. I knew nothing of it. The hunting parties patrol those woods day and night, and have passed by my Vaerla many times. You were just lucky to not have been caught before." 

She paused to gauge the reactions of the other five people in the room. When she found nothing but expectant stares, she continued. 

"As for that creature you saw, it is called a Sharlahkai, which, in my race's ancient tongue, means 'of the shadows'. My people called it that because as you saw, it hides itself in shadows and only comes out of them to attack." 

Qui-gon sat down on the edge of the table between the couches and waited for Illyria to continue her explanation. 

"You see, the Sharlahkai are like you in a way," she gestured to the four Jedi, "they can manipulate what you call the Force." 

All of the Jedi's eyebrows shot up in surprise. It had looked to Padme and Obi-wan that the creature was barely more than a mass of energy, let alone a being that could utilize something as powerful as the Force. 

"Now don't fret," Illyria continued, "your skills with this Force are far more extensive than theirs. They only use it to change their shapes, nothing else." 

The four Jedi were now listening intently to what the petite Iagonian was saying. They hadn't ever heard of a species that could use the Force to manipulate their physiological structure. Perhaps the Jedi would be able to study them later, or find a way to communicate with them. 

"That is why my people fear them so much. When they change shape they can become anything around them, and they love the taste of our blood. I cannot even begin to tell you of the millions we have lost to that murderous race. Over the centuries, though, the deaths have become fewer and fewer as my species has learned to sense shifts in the Force around us and therefore know when the Sharlahkai are near." 

"Why then, Illyria," Qui-gon questioned in a much more gentle tone, "are your people not frightened of us? Wouldn't you believe that we are some of the Sharlahkai?" 

Illyria leaned back into the couch and became very thoughtful. 

"Well, it is a bit difficult to explain," she started slowly, "but the shifts you create in the Force are much less aggravated than those created by the Sharlahkai. I suppose it would be best to say that when the Sharlahkai use the Force they seem to pull it into them aggressively and use it without its permission while, on the other hand, when you use the Force you seem to become one with it and it instead uses you." 

Padme's eyebrows rose at how accurate Illyria's statements were about the Jedi Order's relationship with the Force. She would have to sit down with the petite woman later and ask her for more details about how her people could sense the Force yet not be able to use it. 

"Besides," she explained further," the Sharlahkai can't get into the trees like you, which is obviously the reason why my people live up here." 

"All right," Qui-gon's unemotional mask went back up, "thank you, Illyria. Lieutenant Canton," he turned to the young man seated behind him," will you please take our guest into the kitchen to put away the rations she brought us?" 

The lieutenant nodded to the Master Jedi and briefly fingered his pistol before rising from the couch. Gesturing to Illyria, he beckoned her to follow him through the small archway that led to the kitchen. 

When he was sure Illyria was out of earshot, Qui-gon turned to face his fellow Jedi. 

"Do you really think we can trust her with the coordinates of our hideout, Qui-gon?" Rohhe questioned with a serious look in his eyes. 

Master Jinn sighed and ran his fingers over his short beard. 

"I don't know," He met his friend's gaze and continued," she has not betrayed us thus far, and we are in desperate need of food." 

"However," he continued after a short pause, "I do not believe we should allow her to leave without two or more of us in her presence, if at all." 

Master Antol nodded and turned to Padme. 

"Padawan Naberrie, what are your feelings on the subject?" 

Padme looked at the her best friend's Master respectfully. 

"Well," she started hesitantly, "I certainly understand the risks of letting her leave, but I cannot find it in myself to do anything but trust her." 

Qui-gon's eyes closed in frustration for a brief moment, but did not let that feeling emanate towards his padawan. She had a right to feel whatever she wished, even if it went against all of his thoughts and feelings. 

Padme looked down as Rohhe's eyes bore into her. They weren't accusing, but merely curious. Still, it was a bit unnerving. Slowly, though, his penetrating gaze moved to his own padawan. 

"Padawan, what do you believe?" 

Obi-wan slumped his shoulders slightly and let his eyes shift from his best friend to the Masters. He didn't want to chose a side in the debate, but he knew he had to express his feeling honestly. 

After a few moments of contemplation, he answered. 

"I don't believe we should jeopardize our safety by letting her go." 

Padme did her best to hide her anger and frustration at the fact that no one else, not even Obi-wan, felt how she did towards Illyria, but her silence spoke volumes to her fellow Jedi. 

"Then it is settled," Rohhe concluded, "we shall not allow her to leave, unless we accompany her." 

The rest of the conversation was much of a blur for Padme. She sat silently until it was over, then excused herself to the kitchen to help Canton and Illyria make dinner.

* * *

Later that night, Padme laid quietly on her bed and listened to Qui-gon's soft snoring. The night was halfway over and she still wasn't able to sleep. Fingering the bandages on her biceps, she let her thoughts again wander to her reluctant house guest. The idea of keeping Illyria in the tree house against her will didn't sit well with Padme, so she had spent half the night thinking of ideas of how to convince Qui-gon and Rohhe to trust the small Iagonian. Still, she couldn't come up with a suitable argument on her behalf. Sighing, Padme closed her eyes in one last attempt to fall asleep; however, not more than five seconds after she had closed them, her eyes shot wide open upon hearing the slight creaking sound made by the opening of the front door. 

Slowing getting out of bed, so as not to wake up Qui-gon, Padme slipped through the curtains to the balcony and walked around the deck to the front of the house. She rounded the last corner just in time to see Illyria opening the gate that allowed her access to the trunk of the tree. Padme's heart fell as she saw her friend's attempt to escape. 

"Illyria..." She whispered in a sad voice. 

The small woman's hand froze inches above the latch of the gate. Slumping her shoulders, she turned to face the Jedi padawan. 

"Padme," she began, all the fight clearly gone from her body, "I thought if anyone would trust me it would be you." 

The young Jedi didn't say anything in reply. It deeply saddened her to have to break Illyria's trust. With a sigh she took a step forward and tried to formulate words to comfort her friend, but none came. 

After a moment of silence, Illyria couldn't take it anymore. With a swift, desperate movement, she reached out and took Padme's hands in her own. 

"Please, Padme," she pleaded, almost on the verge of tears, "there are others out there, who think the same as I do. Please, let me go...I can help you." Her eyes were as large as Padme had ever seen them, and held nothing but sincerity. 

Padme looked to the sky for help and prayed to the Force to guide her. When she looked back to Illyria's face, she saw nothing that she could decipher as bad intentions. 

Sighing, she squeezed the small woman's hands and nodded. 

Illyria face lit up. 

"Oh, thank you, Padme, thank you!" She brought the padawan into a tight embrace. When they pulled apart, Illyria reached into her backpack and pulled out a rolled up piece of parchment. 

"Here," She placed the brown, leather-bound object in Padme's hand, "this is a map to a hidden grove that holds many wild animals and as much fruit as anyone could ever eat. My species can't enter, because it is littered with Sharlahkai, but I have a feeling they regard you as one of their own. So, you should be safe." With a sad look she then gave Padme one last hug and jumped to the trunk of the tree and climbed down. Within minutes she was gone. 

With Illyria out of sight, the reality of what she had just done hit Padme full force. Leaning against the railing and closing her eyes tightly shut, she felt the tears start the fall down her cheeks. She believed with all her heart that she had done the right thing, but betraying her Master and fellow Jedi put her mind in agony. 

"Qui-gon and Rohhe will be furious." Obi-wan's voice cut through the darkness. 

Padme was startled out of her thoughts by the interruption, but she continued to lean against the railing with her back to him, not wanting him to see her tear-stained face. 

Obi-wan stepped out of the shadows and started towards her, "Padme...," he began in a serious tone, intending to reprimand her for letting Illyria leave, but she turned around and cut him off. 

"Obi-wan, don't..." 

He stopped dead in his tracks, a pain wrenching his heart at the sight of her turmoil. He had never before seen her cry except for when she was extremely injured. It was not something he liked. 

"I betrayed my Order all for a gut feeling." She whispered, the torment evident in her voice. Placing her hands on her forehead and closing her eyes, more tears rolled down her face. 

Obi-wan didn't know what to do or say. He didn't approve of her actions by any means, but he couldn't condemn them either. He knew she was gifted with intuition and perhaps the Force was speaking through her. 

Walking forward to stand in front of his distressed friend, he quietly pulled her into his arms and placed his stubbly chin against her forehead. Padme remained stiff in his embrace at first, not wanting comfort, but soon wrapped her arms around him in return and pressed her wet face into the side of his neck. They stood silent for a few moments, not needing to say anything, and slowly rocked back and forth. It was hard adapting to a Forceless lifestyle and neither knew exactly what to do with the strong emotions that would come and go, but they did the best they could to comfort each other in those times. After Padme seemed to calm down a little bit, Obi-wan maneuvered them to one of the large chairs situated against the house. Sitting down he gently pulled her into his lap and draped her legs across his. Letting him wrap both arms around her body again, Padme nestled into the crook of his right arm and rested her head against his chest. Finally a calm came over her and it wasn't long after that they both fell into a peaceful sleep.

* * *

In the morning, Padme woke in a state of confusion. Sure, she didn't usually feel normal when she woke up on the small jungle planet, but this morning she knew things weren't quite right. She wasn't in her bed and she certainly wasn't lying next to Qui-gon. Fluttering her eyes open slowly, she found herself snuggled quite cozily against Obi-wan's bare chest. A smile immediately came to her as she realized her situation. 

'Well, this certainly is better than waking up next to Qui-gon.' 

With a content sigh she snuggled closer to her friend's warm body and lifted her eyes to watch him sleep. He truly was a sight to behold. She still didn't know what she felt for him or him for her, but she was perfectly happy at the moment to let the Force have its way and bring about between them what it wished. 

"It's not polite to stare, you know." Obi-wan said, a slow grin creeping onto his handsome face. 

Padme's cheeks flushed at being caught. Embarrassed she lowered her gaze and tried to come up with a witty retort, but much to her frustration none came. 

After a moment of silence, Obi-wan cracked an eye open and winked at her, the grin still firmly planted on his face. He loved it when he got in the last word. Padme let out a snort of air at her friend's success, but couldn't help but crack a smile at the way he was grinning. 

"Well," he said while turning his head to face the beautiful forest scenery and take in the morning, "since we're both awake now, we should probably get up." 

He made a move to stand, but Padme tightened her arms around his waist, "No, I'm enjoying this," she said, playfulness rich in her voice. She couldn't explain why, but all she wanted to do at the moment was remain snuggled against him. 

Obi-wan's smile disappeared at the implication of her words. He couldn't believe his ears. Last time they were as close as they were now, she ran from him, seeming a bit frightened. His eyes snapped seriously to hers, remaining locked there for several moments, searching for the emotions she was feeling. 

"So am I." He said barely above a whisper, as his gaze flicked back and forth between her eyes and her full lips. 

All of his senses seemed to come alive when he was so close to her. He heard every breath she took and felt with agonizing intensity the wonderful sensation of her fingertips unconsciously playing their way across the center of his chest. Force, it was torture wanting to be closer to her, yet by the laws of the Order not being allowed to. 

With a mental groan Obi-wan squeezed his eyes shut, and after a few moments forced the smile back onto his face. 

"However," he said with as much mirth as he could muster, "I don't think it would do to have Rohhe or Master Jinn find us out here like this." 

Padme seemed stunned for a moment to have been brought out of their intimate moment so abruptly, but quickly let out a rich laugh. 

"You're probably right." She shakily unwrapped her arms from around him and climbed out of his lap. 

Obi-wan stood up as well and raised his arms over his head to stretch. 

"Come on," Obi-wan nodded his head towards the nearest entrance into the house, "let's get breakfast. I'm starving." 

Still in their sleepwear they walked into the dining area. Seated at the table in the center of the room was Qui-gon, Rohhe, Canton, and, to Obi-wan's and Padme's shock, Zared. Padme's face lit up as she saw the wounded lieutenant finally out of bed, but her delight soon faded as she sensed the foul mood in the room. 

Both padawans sat down, Padme opposite Canton and Obi-wan opposite Qui-gon, and grabbed pieces of fruit from the bowl in the middle of the table. 

Qui-gon continued to sit quietly and spoon a mashed substance into his mouth, without looking up at either Jedi when they entered. After a few moments of tense silence, he finally spoke. 

"Where is Illyria, padawan?" he questioned while still looking down at his food. 

Padme stopped eating and swallowed the bite of fruit she had in her mouth. She knew this was going to come sooner or later. 

"She's gone." she answered timidly. 

Qui-gon stopped eating and turned to look at her. 

"How?" he questioned dangerously calm. 

Padme could feel all eyes on her now. 

"I...I let her go." she said in a small voice. 

Turning his eyes from her and slowly put down his spoon, Qui-gon stood up from the table. 

"Padawan," he said while moving towards the hallway, "come with me." 

Padme nervously set her fruit down and cast her eyes downward. Slowly, she stood up and followed Qui-gon back to the bedroom they shared. 

'This is a lecture I'm not soon to forget,' she thought and quietly closed the door behind her. 

TBC...   


* * *

**Jedi Keladry-** Thank you so much for beta-ing for me. I really appreciate all the work you do. Oh, and I'm glad you liked all the action in this chapter, I think it needed some to change the pace a little. 

**Smenzer- **Thank you so much for the review! You know, I always thought I was bad at writing action, but if you say I'm awesome at it then I'll believe you and say thank you...and then point to my wonderful beta. :) I hope this chapter gave you a little more insight into the "veloceraptors", and don't worry you will be seeing more of them. 

**Aiska Kenobi- **Thanks for the review!! It seems so many people liked that Canton wasn't in the last chapter, lol. He is very clean-cut, but I think that's why I like to write him. 

**Sassy-Satine- **Thank you for you wonderful comments through your e-mails! I'm glad you thought the chapter was exciting, because I've been trying to add some action to it (it is a action/adventure/romance story so it should have some, lol).   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	16. Chapter 16

"Revelations"- Chapter 16   
Disclaimer and such in Part 1

* * *

Padme leaned against the porch railing at the back of the treetop house. Inside she could hear the murmurings of goodnight wishes as each of her companions made his way to bed. She wished she could have such a luxury. It was the night after she had let Illyria go, and unfortunately, the evening directly following the worst lecture she had ever received from Qui-gon. He had reprimanded her for two good hours at least, asking for explanations and apologies, and then had proceeded to force her to clean the entire house, floor to ceiling. That had not been too bad, but the hours he had made her stand in various training stances were brutal. The worst part, though, had been when he had told her that when they returned to Coruscant he was going to take her in front of the council for questioning and sentencing. The shame she knew she would receive from that was more than she cared to think about. 

Rubbing her sore biceps below the gauze that covered her slowly recovering wounds, Padme closed her eyes. Every muscle in her body ached. She had tried earlier to ease them with a nice, hot bath, but that had only provided minimal comfort. She knew that it was her stress that was causing her muscles to be even more sore than usual, but she couldn't relax at all. The prospect of defending a whim in front of the Council was not a fun one. And adding to her stress, Qui-gon had decided that she not be a part of all meetings concerning any future courses of action. The days just kept getting better and better. 

Padme looked down at herself. Her hair curled down her back in soft waves, now that it was dry and devoid of her Padawan braids, save the lone one that was tucked lightly behind her right ear. She had forgone her regular garb to wash it after her bath and had instead put on an emerald colored dress she had found in one of the sanctuary's wardrobes. It was simple, with bell sleeves, a square cut neck, and an a-symmetrical hemline that rested around her knees. Plain, but flattering all the same. As she fingered the tie at her lower back, Padme sighed. Without her braids, garb, or inclusion in meetings, she felt less like a Jedi than when she was a little girl on Naboo and had not yet even joined the Order. Tears threatened to spill from her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. It was a small solace, but she felt much more like a Jedi if she could keep her emotions in check. 

The sound of approaching footsteps quickly brought Padme out of her reverie. Turning her head to the right, she saw Master Antol smiling and heading in her direction. A confused look came onto her face as the older man settled himself against the railing beside her. 

"Master Antol." Padme inclined her head out of respect, but the question in her voice did not go unnoticed by her companion. It was not often that Rohhe spoke to her. Their conversations were usually limited to small pleasantries, and had never ventured into a long, personal discussions. It seemed odd that he would extend that offer now. 

"Qui-gon can be stubborn sometimes." Rohhe said after a few moments of silence. 

Padme's eyebrows itched ot shoot up at the remark, but her face remained neutral as he continued. 

"He told me of his decision to take you before the Council, and while I agree that it is the best course of action, Padawan Naberrie, may I impart with you a few words of wisdom that my master once told me?" 

Padme could do nothing but look at him with confusion and nod her head. Rohhe smiled to himself at her loss of words. 

"I know that Qui-gon is your Master and that you have sworn an oath to the Jedi Order, but please remember this, young Padawan, these things are not what is the most important. It is the Force, and the Force alone, that you must listen to, even if it goes against what the Order tells you." 

This time Padme's eyebrows did shoot up. What he had just said made perfect sense, but it was hard for her to justify going against the rules of the Order. Sure, she had gone against them in the past, but she could never justify doing so. 

"Master Antol..." She began as her brows furrowed together in thought, but the older Jedi cut her off with a raised hand. 

"Padawan Naberrie," he smiled and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, "just think about what I said for the future." 

Padme looked into his eyes for a long time. Something in his voice and the way his eyes twinkled didn't quite seem to make sense. The future? Were they still talking about her situation with Qui-gon and Illyria? For some reason she felt as if he was alluding to something else, but she had no idea as to what it could be. 

Rohhe squeezed her shoulder before letting it go and softly pushed himself off of the railing. 

"Get some sleep, Padme. It has been a long day for you, and I sense that things will not be getting any easier." 

Padme wanted to ask what he meant by that, but the words died in her mouth as he turned his back towards her and walked into the house. With a sigh, she turned back to the dark forest canopy. 

There were only a few stars visible through the thick leaves and branches, but it still was nice to see something somewhat familiar on the much-too-foreign jungle planet. She had had nothing but trouble since they had crashed on Iagone. First with injury, then with meeting Illyria, and now with Qui-gon. Plus, to add to it all, she had new and confusing feelings for the man she had thought only to be her best friend. She wished everything would just start to make at least a little sense. As tears once again tried to spill from her eyes, Padme looked to the heavens and started to pray. 

"Force, I know I can't contact you directly, but, please, guide me..." Padme's eyes glanced at the nearby lit-up window as she saw Obi-wan's projected silhouette move along the cloth drapes, soon followed by Qui-gon's. 

"...in everything." She finished with a whisper. 

Heeding Master Antol's advice, Padme sniffed away the offending tears that had yet to fall, and made her way around the porch to her chamber. Tomorrow was another day, but at the moment, getting away from the world of the conscious was the most appealing idea she had heard in a very long time.

* * *

Obi-wan sighed as he sat alone in the dark living room. It was well into the early hours of the morning, and he still could not sleep. The events of the past few days had left him utterly disturbed and uncomfortable. First the attack with the Iagonians, then watching Padme get punished, and finally the decree that Padme was no longer allowed in strategical meetings. The other punishments she had received he could live with, and even a few agree with, but to seclude her from important planning, that he could not accept. They had come to Iagone as four Jedi on a research mission. Now, to exile one of them to pretty much the status of civilian distressed Obi-wan completely. At the beginning of the evening, when he first learned the news, he had been beside himself with shock and anger, but he had set those feelings aside for the moment and was now simply trying to work out a way to persuade Master Jinn into temporarily forgetting the punishments he placed on his padawan, and, instead, let her be the asset he knew she was to the team. The solutions, however, were few and far between. Obi-wan knew that once Qui-gon made up his mind there was no changing it, regardless of the situation. 

Craning his neck from side to side, Obi-wan felt his muscles begin to stiffen. All this stress and no way of accessing the Force to relieve it was really taking a toll on him. He had even gone to Lieutenant Canton earlier to hear more about the relaxation techniques he had been teaching Padme for her stress, but it was of no use. After just five minute of listening to the man talk, Obi-wan had become so irritated with his niceties that he stood up and left the room without a word. He had thought that perhaps if he and Canton weren't discussing Padme then he would be able to tolerate him, but that just was not the case. The man was plain irritating, no matter what the context. 

Forcing all thoughts of the disturbingly perfect lieutenant out of his head, Obi-wan stood up. His musings were getting him nowhere. He was more tense now than he was when he first sat down, fuming about Padme's situation. Scratching his thickening beard, he started down the short hallway to the refresher. A nice, long shower was just what he needed to calm himself down. At least under the hot water he could relieve his aching body, if not his aching mind. 

Shutting the door and undressing, Obi-wan gently turned the hot water knob and waited until the room was filled entirely with steam before he parted the long, cloth curtain and stepped into the metal basin of the tub. Once the warmth of the water hit his bare chest, he knew he had been right in assuming a shower was the perfect remedy for his melancholy. It soothed his sore muscles, especially the ones under the wounds on his abdomen. 

Leaning his head against the wood panels of the wall, Obi-wan let the beads of water flow down his back. The pulsating stream of warm water did wonders for his tension, but his mind was still focusing on other things besides relaxation. One, namely, being the young padawan he called his best friend. She was all he had been able to think about for the last few days. 

It had been incredibly hard for him watch Master Jinn punish her in the way that he had, and to hear that she would be sent in front of the Jedi Council for sentencing was heart-breaking. Padawans had been kicked out of the Order for doing less than Padme had done. He didn't want to lose his best friend, but he was almost certain that she would be stripped of her title if things didn't work out well on Iagone. 

Sighing, Obi-wan scrubbed some soap into his hair. Why were things so complicated? He thought back to when he and Padme had awoken the previous morning in each other's arms. It had felt so natural to him, so right. Even now, he didn't know why he hadn't kissed her, because, as startling a discovery as it was, he had wanted to, very badly. He still wanted to, in fact, which unsettled him even more, because he knew Padme would not be like the girls he had chased after when he was younger. She would not be a one-night stand. No, he knew if he started anything with her, it would be lifelong, and that scared him. It was against the rules and everything that had ever been taught to him. Things like that were strictly forbidden, and would not be tolerated in any form. Both of them would be thrown out of the Order and made shameful examples to all Jedi, new or old. 

"But I don't care," Obi-wan whispered out loud. 

He paused as his own words hit him. When had Padme become more important to him than the Order? 

As much as it shocked him to the core, he could not deny that it was true. Some time during their constant bickering and playful banter, he had let her in, under his skin, and had begun to care for her, deeply. 

The sound of knocking on the refresher door brought Obi-wan out of his thoughts. 

"Padawan?" came Rohhe's muffled voice. 

"I'll be out in a minute, master," Obi-wan managed to choke out after a few minutes of silence. 

"Alright," Rohhe said, although a hint of question could be heard in his voice, "but make it quick. We do not want to be detected." Obi-wan could hear his master's retreating footsteps almost immediately. 

Reaching to turn off the hot water, Obi-wan paused and looked down at himself. He was trembling. Admitting to himself that his best friend meant more to him than the order he swore his life to left him feeling slightly jarred. Placing his hands on the wall, he once again leaned his head against the cool wood he found there. Force, he needed time. Time to sort out his feelings, time to figure out what he was going to do about them, but he knew that was not a luxury he was going to get any time soon. With a sad sigh he pushed himself upright. 

'So much for a shower relaxing me,' he thought while stepping out of the tub. Quickly toweling off, he pulled on his breeches and inner tunic and opened the door to the hallway. As silently as possible, Obi-wan made his way to his bedroom and crawled into the bed he shared with his master. He knew Rohhe was still awake, but also knew that he would not ask any questions as to why his padawan was taking a shower at such a late hour. 

Mentally thanking the Force for such an understanding master, Obi-wan closed his eyes and tried as best he could to fall asleep. 

'Only twelve more days,' was the young padawan's last thought before fatigue overtook him and he finally got the rest he deserved. 

TBC...

* * *

I'm sorry it took me so long to update this, but real life, yet again, has been getting in the way. I've been doing schooling in France for the past few months, so I didn't have much access to the internet. However, now that I'm back in the states, I will try to update more often. Just rest assured that I do not plan on giving up on this story. I will update, it just may not come very frequently. 

Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter. Thank you to all of my faithful readers and my wonderful beta! Special thanks to: 

**Jedi Keladry**: Thank you so much for all of the lovely reviews and critiques you have given my work. I really appreciate your comments and corrections. They really help me with my writing and inspiration. 

**sassy-satine**: Sorry to keep you waiting so long! But I do thank you for your patience, and of course for your wonderful reviews of the past few chapters. I hope you enjoyed this chapter too. 

**Saskia**: Thank you so much for your reviews! I also appreciate the e-mail of concern you sent me. I'm here and all right! Hopefully this chapter met up to your standards. 


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